[PKMN OPEN] Pokémon Odyssey: Search For Cresselia (IC)

[Megaman765]

Snype and Cal- Some time to goof off

Snype seemed to once again be keeping himself secluded from everyone else in one of the studys within the fort. He seemed to be looking over the new passages that Guardia had obtained and had been rereading the previous books as well to get a further grasp on them. "Unlocking the Anican... guess thats something Gabe would be after according to the notes...and...another guardian huh..." Snype muttered to himself as he stared down at the passages as if in a trance.

A loud thumping noise made itself known alongside a huff when a certain green dragon plopped down next to Snype. Cal swept his tail out of the way and laid down with his arms behind his head and said nothing at first.

Snype jumped when he heard the loud thump beside him and looked up at Cal with a blank expression. "O-oh! Hey Cal. You look like you've been busy. How'd things go with those two?" Snype asked.

"Oh, it go'd." Cal said exasperatedly, completely ignoring all grammatical conventions." I think I made a tiny bit of progress, but the real talk isn't going to start until after I go see James. I think I'm ready, and I think it may give me the insight I need to really learn about Roxanna. Figured I'd take a look at the new book first, considering you've been hogging it." He finished with a teasing smirk at the Sableye.

"Keheh believe me I have my reasons. Some of the stuff in these passages are pretty interesting. Could take our little adventure on a totally different spin." Snype said as he placed the books down on the table.

Cal yawned and stretched his arms. "Sounds like a ton'o fun, have you learned anything that seems to apply to Darkrai yet?"

"Well... sort of." Snype said. "First of all this explained about that Ancian thing that I saw on that scroll when we were battling the agents. The scroll mentioned various legendaries being tapped and having their Ancians unlocked. I've gone through this first passage a couple times and I still don't quite understand it. Its some form of unlocked potential but even then, the passage isn't specific at all." Snype said. "Here check it out."

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Passage 1:

...the mind is an infinitely complicated matter. And yet, the average 'mon is only able to utilize a fraction of their mental capabilities. Psychics have a better grasp than most, but even they fail to see the true potentials that can be unlocked. How I envy the legendaries, as they've been tapped. Tapped! Their Ancian was unlocked a long time ago by the Great Diviner himself, the Clockmaker. I must discover how to do the same. How to unlock potential! Do the secrets lie in these stones?

Passage 2:


I have attempted to unlock the Ancian, but it is a difficult thing to do. To be at peace with oneself, with one's surroundings. I cannot fathom what I cannot comprehend. What does it all mean? Is there something I miss? I have done all the steps. I have walked with the legendaries. Why cannot I open the same doorway that they do?

Passage 3:

I have found it! I have found it! The legendary city's location! Solid gold, they say! Beauty beyond imagination, they say! How I long to see it! Nearly a decades search and a mountain of my supplies has led me to this moment, and it's only a few short weeks away. My companions have grown skeptical over the years. I've lost friends. I've lost colleagues. Some continue to stay, and support me. But most of them don't believe. They don't believe that we'll strike the riches of riches!

Some do support me though. There's this odd fellow in the group. Joined a few months back. He's been real helpful overall. But he doesn't seem that interested in the city itself. All he keeps going on about is something specific there instead. A shrine of some sort. I asked him continuously what it was, but he shrugged it off. And then he told me once, that it was the Ancian.
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After a few moments of contemplation that looked suspiciously like dozing Cal opened his eyes and reached into his bag. "I bet you it has something to do with Mega Stones, even if only on a cursory level."

"Yeah... maybe its a level beyond Mega Evolution? That'd be my theory anyways. Darkrai wants to change the Guardian Cycle and all. Chances are Gabe will be looking for this legendary city and that Ancian..." Snype looked up at Cal and noticed the dozing expression in his eyes. "Kehe, hey if you start dozing off I'm gonna have to find some way to keep ya up!"

"Bah, it's been too long since I could relax, Anatellia was just constant stress." Cal kept his eyes closed and pressed his Mega Stone to his belly. "I need to get some off-time in while I can, I don't have long before I'm back to stressland, none of us do, but I've got a few minutes at most right about now."

"Kehehe, you should hang out with me more then! I have a knack for loosening folks up! Ask Guardia! Kehe!" Snype said as he gave the Dragonite a playful poke to his side. "Though I do want to show you this next bit though which really stuck out. Remember when we were told about the guardians? It turns out theres a tenth one... something called the watcher. Was wondering what your opinion on that was. Go on, give it a scan." Snype said as he moved the Guardian book to Cal.

After looking the book over, Cal looked thoughtful, and stayed silent for quite a while. After some time passed he opened his eyes and thought out loud. "It can't be Mew, she/he isn't tied very strongly to any element as far as I'm aware, besides maybe DNA...Forests and Eternity...eternity is a measurement of time..." He thought back to an old story that first Kav told him, and then he himself re-read many times over. "What about Celebi? Celebi's supposed to be able to travel through time freely, and Celebi's always been portrayed like a forest spirit in every story I've ever heard."

Snype turned over to Cal and nodded. "Well... Yeah that would make sense. Kind of surprising to expect a mon like that to be The Watcher though... I almost expected Arceus himself or something! Kehe!" Snype said with a small laugh. "But then... whats that mean for us? You think Darkrai might try to target Celebi?"

"I certainly hope not, who knows of the terrible things that could happen if Darkrai got ahold of Celebi." Cal shook his head to try and fling off the dark thoughts. "So, you had any luck with your stone yet?" He continued more positively.

Snype shook his hand and pulled the stone out. "Haven't had time to practice it more... but still doubt I'd have any more luck then before. I know whats holding me back and until I fix that, I'm not going to bother." Snype said with a sigh. "But hey look at you, you almost nailed it! Keheh. Maybe we won't have to worry too much about Darkrai once you get it going! Kehe." Snype said with a smile.

"I think I'm ready." Cal said resolutely, breaking mercilessly through the humor. "I'm going to find out as soon as I go see James, if you'd like to join me when I do you're more than welcome. 'The walk' is supposed to bring Wisdom as well as strength, and I intend to use that wisdom with Roxanna. This may sound crazy, but I want to see if I can break her bond with Darkrai, possibly Ben's too. I think they may have information that could make that possible, even if they don't know it and I intend to learn it."

Snype smiled up at Cal. "Keheh, glad to hear your taking this as seriously as ever." Snype said. "Kehe, but I thought ya wanted to relax a little bit first? We got a little bit of time! Take ten minutes to just goof off a little eh?" Snype said with a laugh. "It'll help ya out in the long run trust me!"

Cal laid back on the ground again and opened a single eye at Snype. "What do you think I cam over here for?" He said quietly before closing his eye again and yawning.

"Kehe! You sounded so pumped for a second there, thought you would up and leave! Kehe" Snype said as he hopped onto Cal, just laying on his belly. Snype looked down at Cal and rubbed his chin. "Well if ya wanna goof off then I think I can provide! Kehe!" Snype said as he held up his claws in a rather threatening manner! Only to quickly reach down and start to tickle at Cals sides. He needed something to distract him from all the serious stuff he had encountered and this seemed to be the very first thing on his mind.

The dragon yawned deeply and closed his eyes again as if he felt nothing. Following Snype's stunned silence he opened his eyes and raised a brow. "What? You've met Kav right? Do you think I'd be so easy to tickle?...That does give me an idea though..."

Snype blinked. "W-what the hell is with mon not being ticklish around here? I swear you gold tribe fellows have nerves o- wait, what?" Snype paused once Cal mentioned an idea.

With no warning Cal grabbed Snype, easily lifting him off of his belly, and sat up. After a moments contemplation he set the Sableye on the ground next to him and pinned him to the ground. "I bet nobody's ever been able to get ahold of the King of Thieves to give him a taste of his own medicine!"

"A-ack!" Snype muttered as he was pinned right to the floor. Served him right for being casual! The Sableye wiggled his legs around to try and get out of the Dragonite's grasp. "Y-yeah well...uh...you...er, got lucky?" Snype said with a wide nervous grin. He didn't really have a retort for that one.

Cal matched the grin with a smirk of his own before he moved the hand that wasn't occupied pinning Snype down, and began to dance his stubby finger-claws on his captive's stomach. "How do you like karma huh? I bet this'll teach you way better than a knock from Guardia!"

Snype gritted his teeth and started giving off small giggles as he felt that little claw go along his stomach. "K..k-kehehe...h-hey! Y-your-s-stealing my id-kehehehe!" Snype started laughing, not his most ticklish spot but it didn't take much to get him going!

"Well you're not using it right now anyways right?" Cal mocked. "Oh, speaking of ideas...You move in a lot of interesting ways, crawling on surfaces like a Spinarak, traveling through shadows. But you can't fly, I'm sure you've hitched a ride before, but what's the fastest you've ever flown?"

Snype blinked. "Well... uh I did try an experiement with Able one time and went way faster then I should be able too. Failed pretty miserably though if that still cou-cou....k-kehehe!" Snype said as he kept on laughing.

Cal thought it over and nodded. "Good to hear, well remember when I threw you at Gabe? Let's just say today you're gonna get a crash course in G-forces." He smiled ear to ear, a rare case of showing off his surprisingly sharp teeth.

Snype just stared blankly. "U-uh... haha...your uh... kidding right? You wouldn't really try to make me into a purple puddle like that would you?" Snype said with a nervous laugh.

"Hm? No way, I'm not going to throw you again, that would be crazy and mean." He allowed that to hang in the air for a moment of either dead, or peace. Once the moment passed he wrapped his arms around Snype and took off for the sky, rising as fast as he could, stopping to hover in place when they could see all of Ferrol. "So, having fun yet?"

Snype panted heavily as he was suddenly flown up into the air. "Ogghh... w...was not...ready for that... if I weren't a ghost I'd be projectile vomiting right now..." Snype said, shaking a bit. He turned his hand and checked out the view though. "Oh... keheh... wow ya know I've never seen the fort from this angle actually"

"Good" Cal said positively, smile still plastered on his face. "Prepare to see it from a few more angles." With that he dived straight down towards the Fort proper, gaining speed and angling to swoop right over the head of some of Ferrol's inhabitants, enjoying both the greetings and the complaints he heard from underneath. After his sudden dive Cal began to fly all around the place, speeding along as quickly as possible.

Snype clung on for dear life. At this rate he may be able to must vomiting out something! Flying at such high speeds was something Snype wasn't quite used to! He couldn't really say anything Smart toward Cal either! He could barely even open that maw of his while they were flying.

After a while Cal slowed down and lazily drifted over Ferrol for a bit before landing on the docks and gently setting Snype down. "So, what'd you think? Flying's pretty neat huh?"

"Hah...ahah... w-well... its something I still have to get used to... k-keheh... we should try doing this more. Ya know, maybe next time give me a chance to adjust eh? Kehe" Snype said as he flopped right onto his back.

"Maybe...if you don't give me a reason to make your stomach turn first next time." Cal countered, sticking his tongue out. "I can do more than fly though, I'm pretty versatile. Know where my species' main habitat actually is, naturally speaking?"

Snype leaned up a bit. "Don't you guys usually live like, near the sea or in the sea somewhere? I know you start off as Dratini'n all."

"Yup." Cal said, continuing to smile and letting himself lean back. He continued to tip towards the water until he slipped right off the dock with a big splash, disappearing under the depths.

Snype was naturally splashed and ended up being soaked. Snype stood up and looked down in the water. "Keheh, figured you'd be a natural swimmer down there! Wonder how long you can hold your breath? Keheh" Snype said with a laugh.

There was another splash as the Emerald Sentinel shot out of the water and spun to dry off a bit, scattering sparkling droplets all around. "A very astute question! I can hold my breath for a very long time, on account of how thin the air can get at the elevations we Dragonites like to soar, we can get more out of less. Thanks to all that, and our previous forms we can stay underwater for a pretty long time." He smiled at himself, proud to speak of his fairly adaptive - in his own opinion - biology. "We may not maintain our dual-respiratory systems when we evolve, but we're still built pretty well for the water. There aren't a lot of us, but from what I've read more than a few of my species that exist in the wild live in the ocean. Some of us find small islands to rule so we can have a terrestrial and aquatic territory."

"Keheh, sounds like a fun time" Snype said with a wide ol grin. "Most I can say about our species is we got extra sharp chompers! Kehe! These things can bit through diamond so be careful where ya stick your hands in! Kehe" Snype said with a laugh. "Our natural night vision is also pretty nifty. Dunno if I ever told ya about that one!"

"Oh yeah, your teeth must be very sharp, impressive." Cal answered, impressed. "I'll never understand your eyes though. They look like gems, crystals, how does your biology even work? Sableye are pretty weird pokémon now that I think about it."

Snype snickered up at Cal. "Kehe! We feed off of minerals and somehow that just becomes a part of how we grow... if I explained the specifics we'd be here for a verryy long time." Snype said. "Our crystals are kinda like casings for our eyes in a sense. They reflect a lot of light so we're able to see through the dark very easily like I said. Gems are our main diet on top of that so our body forms around it." Snype said, pointing to the various gems within his body.

Cal chuckled to himself and knocked on Snype's chest. "I guess that helps explain why you're pretty tough even with your...diminutive stature." He looked back over the Fort and saw the flash of someone using the network point. "Someone else? Listen Snype, I should probably go see what's up. It hasn't really sunk in with all the stuff we've been up to, but I suppose I have more responsibilities now, so I should see about greeting our new arrival." He put a hand on the Sableye's shoulder and smiled at him. "Thanks for showing me the book, and thanks for helping me unwind."

"Keheh, aw any time pal!" Snype said back up to him. "But... diminutive? Kehe! Comon I have more bulk that ya think! Kehe! I think you were too busy showing off to guardia last time to really notice though. Kehehe" Snype teased Cal.

"Glad to hear it! Keep eating the biggest, most dense gems you can find and I bet one day you'll have Sevipers like these!" Cal smirked and did a short lived pose, flexing his arms despite the fact that so little of his musculature ever showed through the thick scales. "I'll see you later, after I see who's ported in I've gotta go see James!" He strode away from the harbor even as he lsitened for Snype's reply. Deciding to walk since the others in Ferrol must be tired of him flying about like an idiot by then.

Snype laughed at Cal. "Kehe! You can bet on that!" Snype said. "K..kehe... hrm... what was I going to... ah! right... I need to get these letters to the thieves." Snype said. Snype picked up the books and took them along just incase. Time to get back to buisness.

 

[Sephear]

Fort Ferrol
A Fustercluck of emotions, violence, and enigmas​

There was a flash within Fort Ferrol as the Network Point brought two more 'mon into the Gold Tribe base. One of them, an old Jolteon, looked at the place with a hint of sadness in his eyes. "Rattles," he called to the Ferrothorn who stood beside him. "This is Fort Ferrol. You'll be staying here to help the Gold Tribe and their allies in their fight against Darkrai. Once you're set up here, I'll be going back to Gold City to help keep up the defense. Understand?" Rattles nodded, her face expressionless as usual (not that it has many expressions it's even capable of). The Jolteon stepped forward to begin his search for Guardia or any other high-ranking Gold Tribe member to introduce Rattles to.

It was only a few seconds after the two arrived that the point shimmered once more. Another mon stepped through, but it was no Gold Tribe. Obsidian, often named as the son of Penance, had stepped on through. He wore an expression of indifference on his face as he pushed past the two new arrivals, seemingly lost in deep thought.

The Jolteon recognized the Weavile as the son of Penance and approached him. "Obsidian! Do you happen to know where Guardia is? I have to talk with her about something."

Obsidian stopped in mid-stride, looking back at the electric-type. "... I just got back." He croaked out, his voice sounding a tad hollow, "I don't know. Sorry."

The Zangoose Gold Tribe leader soon appeared at the Network Point behind the group of 'mon there. "Obsidian?" She called out. "Wraith told me the Network Point wa-" She stopped herself as she noticed the other two Pokemon with the Weavile Seeker. "... Needlestorm? Is that you?" She asked in genuine surprise, before her eyes set on the Ferrothorn beside the Jolteon. "What the hell is going on here?"

Bennett "Needlestorm" Wilder sighed. "This here is Rattles, and... I guess you could call her my daughter of sorts. I want you to let her join you in your mission. She's very strong and will definitely be able to help you, or at the very least I can guarantee that she won't get in the way. You can trust her to do just about whatever you ask of her if it's something she's able to do. I'm going to help with Gold City's defense and at my age I probably won't last very long, so can I entrust her to you?"

"Rattles?" Guardia repeated the name with curiosity. She glanced over the Ferrothorn again. "Interesting name... alright Needlestorm, I'll respect your wishes," She agreed with a nod. "But please take it easy back there, will you?" Bennett nodded in response.

"Take a message back with you." Obsidian stated as he began to walk off, "Penance has turned. Target all remaining mon who answer to the name 'Seeker'. There are those who are under my leadership now, so check before you start blasting."

"What!?" shouted Bennett in surprise, with Guardia's face also widening with surprise. "Just what has happened?" He paused for a moment, looking at the ground in shock before facing Obsidian again. "Yes, of course. The Tribe needs to know. Thank you for telling me…" He looked at Guardia for a few seconds with concern before finally speaking to Rattles again. "I'll be going now. These people will teach you many things if you keep an eye on them, so make sure they stay safe." He hesitated a bit before slowly walking back to the Network Point to deliver the news.

"Safe travels, brother," Guardia waved at the Jolteon, before she looked on in disbelief at the Weavile. "Penance turned?! And the Seekers with him? Are you freaking kidding me?!"

"Aw I missed Bennet!? You kidding me? I really wanted to say h-WHAT!?!" Cal stopped mid-stride and slumped his shoulders. "I can't believe...I honestly thought better of Penance." He managed to step a few more times to join the group but he certainly wasn't feeling perky anymore. Guardia gave Callimer a slight acknowledging nod before she turned her attention back to Obsidian.

Obsidian just stopped again, "... One of them gave me a note... before they left." He shook his head, "It was Penance's encrypted code. He left the city behind our backs, and while we were distracted by fighting Roxanna... he ported over to Darkrai's camp. Said he seeks the truth and all that crap." He kicked a rock, "If he didn't accept their offer, he would be killed, no doubt, and that I would gain control over the Seekers if he didn't report back. If he did decide that their truth was believable... well... he would join them, along with the Seekers. He wanted me to come to... but I couldn't."

He turned about to face her, "I just lost a ton of troops... and no doubt those in other places are fleeing over to Darkrai's side as well. Tollen... Valkaria... Anatellia... we just lost big numbers. Only a few have stayed behind, and those are the mon I'll trust. We aren't Seekers anymore... we're Torch Bearers. We're staying by your side, even if it kills us." He turned back around, "There's one Torch Bearer left here, from my understanding. Those in Anatellia who are still loyal to us are going to be porting over soon, given Gaiyo's previous orders. So be on the look out for them."

"Damn it," Guardia cursed as she shook her head in disbelief. "Stupid, stupid, duck. This is terrible news for us. This basically means that Darkrai now knows we're looking for Cresselia. Which means things just got a lot more complicated..." She sighed deeply, before turned to Rattles. "Sorry to have to drop you into all this. Rattles, right? What's your take on all this?"

Rattles sat down on her bottom and looked up at Guardia before lifting her heavy feelers, proceeding to drop them on the ground in a sequence. They left punctures that looked distinctly like letters one after another until they spelled "I will keep you safe." She didn't really understand what was happening so that was all she could say.

"Uh... huh," Guardia looked at Rattles quizzically. "I probably should have asked Needlestorm a bit more about you before he left... I'll have to contact him later. Thanks for the heads up."

"Ferrothorns aren't really known for being all that vocal." Cal broke in.

Obsidian didn't say much, "... As I said before." He started, "I'm with you. Cause at this point... we die together." He gave a helpless shrug, "It's what life has thrown at us. We just have to keep going. It's just going to be a hard road from here."

"Right," Guardia agreed with a nod. She turned to Rattles. "Let's go introduce you to the others, then?" She asked the Ferrothorn. She nodded, slid a feeler across the letters to erase them, and stood up, ready to follow.

Guardia cocked an eyebrow again and shrugged, as she led the way through Fort Ferrol. As she scanned around, she spotted a familiar Ralts sulking away toward the center of Fort Ferrol. "Oh, shoot, it's Raz!" She yelled, as she looked over to Rattles. "... Not sure if he would be the best 'mon for you to get acquainted with first..." Guardia quickly looked over to Callimer. "Sentinel, can you watch her for now? I need to talk to Raz," She stated. Before giving Cal a chance to respond, she glanced to Rattles. "Rattles, Sentinel will watch over you right now, I need to go talk to my... that guy. I'll see you later!"

Rattles turned to Callimer wordlessly, waiting for him to say or do something.

Cal looked back and forth between Guardia and Rattles, then watched his leader depart for a moment. "Right..." He turned to Rattles and shrugged. "Guess I'll be the one showing you around. It's nice to meet you Rattles, it's a shame Bennett never introduced us." Rattles responded with some spinning of ambiguous meaning. He wasn't sure if Ferrothorns were physically incapable of talking, or if Rattles was a special case, but either way he didn't expect her to speak. "Hold on just a moment and I'll show you around."

Cal strode over to Obsidian just before he wandered off and put a hand on his shoulder, stopping him to get a few words in. "I can't pretend to know what you're going for Obsidian, but don't blame yourself. There's nothing you could have done, Penance doesn't let anyone sway his decisions too much from what I've seen. And nobody could have expected you to attack your own father and your friends, what matters is you had the courage and foresight to stay."

Obsidian was just silent, then he walked on off, "I need to be alone."

The Emerald Sentinel merely nodded as Obsidian left, not wanting to bother him. "Alright Rattles, sorry you had to get here at a sort of awkward time. Let's take a stroll, shall we?" Rattles nodded and stepped in line behind the Dragonite.

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"And here we have my personal favorite part of Ferrol's rather...crowded accommodations: the Harbor." Cal prattled on like a tour guide, stopping just shy of the main dock and smiling at Rattles. "It's the only spot in the whole place that isn't constantly filled with people...besides wherever Raz or James are at any given time..."

Rattles watched him silently, unable to appreciate the tranquility of the place. She took a moment to look out at the lake and peered down over the edge of the dock trying to see underneath the water. She didn't see very much, so she then dipped one of her feelers into it. She decided there was nothing of interest to her, so she looked back over at Cal as if asking what to do next.

Cal leaned his head to the side a bit and cocked an eyebrow at Rattles, not quite used to her body language yet. "I'm afraid there's not a whole lot left to see, unless we want to visit the refugees and make ourselves feel bad, or find someone else to visit. I'm sorry the tour's been so sparse. I saw you write earlier. So tell me, what would you like to do? What do you usually do in your off-time?"

The Ferrothorn sat down to write like before, but letting all the weight of her heavy metal body down at once caused the wood to crack, surprising her and making her shoot to a standing position again. She spent a bit prodding at the wood with her feeler spikes as if the material were completely alien to her before walking to the solid ground nearby. Now somewhere she was sure she could write, she sat down and got to work. "I watch Bennett or roam my mountain or feed."

"Hmm, quite a challenge to expand on such a diverse and flowing lifestyle." Cal muttered to himself. "Well I know someone I could introduce you to, I'm sure you'll find him quite interesting. Sadly I'm not sure if he'll feel the same, he doesn't seem to care about much besides money, and fighting. I kinda like him though. What'dya say?"

Rattles made sure to erase her letters before standing and moving behind Cal once again.

The green Dragonite lead the way to the river near the Fort, sparkling in the sun emanating from the clear sky. Once they arrived it didn't take long for Cal to spot the red and yellow lump reclining on the riverbank and he stood so as to cast shade over his target. "Howdy James, I brought someone new to meet you."

The one-eyed mercenary had his hands behind his head as he rested comfortably on the grass. He leaned up slightly at the sound of Cal's voice, and observed the two 'mon in front of him with his good eye. He took a quick look at Callimer, and then scanned over Rattles for a moment longer, before he reclined again. "Hey," He greeted casually.

Rattles was still for a moment, staring at the Blaziken before finally waving at him with one of her feelers. She then continued to stare, unsure of what to do next. She decided to peer into the river, which ran unlike the lake from before.

"Been enjoying your rest?" Cal continued, equally as casual.

James once more leaned up again and glanced at Callimer. "I'm not much for small talk, green. If you wanna chat, you're gonna have to dance at the same time."

"Oh is that so?" Cal questioned, crossing his arms and raising an eyebrow at the Blaziken. "Fine, have it your way, but today, I have a serious question for you. And after we tussle, you're going to answer it, whether I win or lose. And this time I intend to knock you on your ass."

James nodded, and instantly made a kip-up to his feet. He cracked his neck and stretch his arms to the left and right. "Yeah, yeah, alright," He answered, before turning to the Ferrothorn. "Joining or watching?" He asked her.

Rattles sat down and began typing, confused at the whole thing. "Dancing?" She seemed like she wanted to continue that line, but instead she erased those letters and started a new one. "I'll watch." She looked back and forth between James and Callimer, unsure of what was about to happen.

The Blaziken cocked an eyebrow at the Ferrothorn and shrugged. "Alright," He muttered before he squared up to the Dragonite. He then pointed up toward a random spot in the sky above. "One more tomorrow," He muttered in a low voice, and stared down to Cal. The Blaziken then brought his arm back and propelled himself at the larger 'mon. His fist caught on fire halfway through his approach and he extended it forward in a powerful Fire Punch aimed for the Dragonite.

As ever James' speed was hard to be prepared for, even with practice, but Cal just barely managed to jump backwards and avoid the attack. It wasn't the best way to dodge a punch, but Dragonites weren't particularly great at limbo.

Suddenly there was a loud whirring noise followed by both combatants being pulled towards the ground by an intense force. The one responsible for the increased gravity, Rattles, began pounding at the ground faster than before. "Bennet told me to keep you safe. Stop or I will have to subdue you." She then stood tall on her feelers and began to spin her body once more, ready to jump in should the pair continue.

"No, Rattles, it's okay!" Cal called out, gritting his teeth while he tried to keep his footing. "We're not fighting, we're sparring. You know sharpening one blade with another, practicing, honing each other's skills. Nobody's in real danger...even if we will be bruised afterwards."

"Interesting... friend you got," James managed to blurt out through the intensity of the force sucking him to the ground.

Rattles slowed her spinning and dispelled the intensified gravity before looking back and forth between the combatants again. Her segments continued to spin slowly for a few seconds before finally going still. However, she remained standing on her feelers, still at least somewhat on alert. With one feeler, she spelled out "Ok." before stepping back out of the way.

"Well, that was weird," James commented as he relaxed again following the relief of pressure from the Ferrothorn. "Let's pick up again before your friend sees something else he doesn't like," The Blaziken responded. Without much hesitation, he charged forward at the Dragonite once more. This time, both of his fists lit on fire. As he ran forward, he carried himself with a sort of casual ferocity. It was deceptive, his moves. He ran forward as if he was jogging for sport, but he carried with him a monument of power waiting to explode.

The Blaziken once more thrust forward, this time with both of his fists in a dual Fire Punch combo.

Cal tried something he hadn't been willing to in his first few sparring matches with James...He blocked. Crossing his forearms in front of his face only did so much to soften the blow, luckily his type advantage helped somewhat. Cal slid back a few feet, carving up a small trench with his feet in the process. In retaliation he flew straight at James with an Ice Punch, feeling it was a good starting place to answer a Fire Punch. He began the first part of his two stage attack by trying to slam his fists on either side of the Blaziken, prepared for what would happen if he managed to dodge. The Blaziken indeed did dodge, as he ducked down to avoid the two punches and aim for a sweeping motion at the Dragonite's legs with a Low Kick.

As soon as James began to lower Cal pushed off of the ground and angled himself so that he was still facing James when his fists clashed and shards of ice shot straight at the Blaziken while the Dragonite's momentum carried him further up and away. The Blaziken retorted this combination with his own fists, which were lit with flames and burst across the ice that was in front of him. He jumped up soon after dispelling the first wave of the ice and made for a direct strike toward Callimer's gut with a Brick Break.

There was no way Cal could effectively dodge that attack in the air without giving James an equally enticing opening so he decided to take the shot to his stomach and match it with a Superpower'd slam right towards the corner of James' neck and shoulder. The Blaziken took the attack in full force, just as the Dragonite did. He grunted from the pain, but quickly decided to counter once more without much of a pause. A Blaze Kick coming from a spinning motion began to form on his leg, and he used the flaming attack to strike at the Emerald Sentinel.

Cal had no time to dodge the second attack properly from so close, so instead he relied on the strength still flowing through him from Superpower and parried the blow, gritting his teeth at the pain in his arm. As soon as enough of the momentum from the Blaze Kick had transferred to him he grabbed James' leg and spun him around before flinging him back at the ground with all of his strength. As soon as he let go he switched from Superpower to Extremespeed and dived straight for the Blaziken in a blur.

The Blaziken collided with the ground, but used his elbows to cushon the blow and quickly prop himself to his side to see the incoming large Dragonite diving right at him. He extended his arms up at him and jumped up to meet him in the air. He began to unleash a flurry of combinations at him as part of his Close Combat.

James' strength truly was amazing to be able to stop so much downward force by pushing upwards, but luckily Cal's Extremespeed helped him match James blow for blow. Despite the fact that they were sparring he could feel himself amping up almost unconsciously, he wondered as always if he was actually pushing the mercenary or not. James wasn't the easiest to read.

James threw one more powerful punch to end his Close Combat combo, he put an extra amount of force into it.

Cal matched James' Close Combat finale with one last slug of his own, thrown with another Superpower's weight behind it. The two fists from the powerful Pokemon collided, sending a shockwave of wind across the grass plane. The one-eyed Blaziken glared intensely into the Dragonite's eyes as his fist remained in place. But after a few more seconds of pressure, he relaxed both his gaze and his arm and backed away while Cal matched his actions.

"Good," He commented.

"I'd say so, it's a pleasure scrapping with you as always." Cal said with a smile.

"So? What did you wanna know?" James asked. "You earned a question."

"I want to know if you think I'm ready for Mega Evolution. I've tried a few times now, and every time there's been something holding me back." Cal said solemnly, still a bit ashamed by his lack of success.

"Holding you back..." The Blaziken snorted. "You've progressed further than most would have in your short time... " He turned around and proceeded to leave. "I've got to go meet up with my employer. Catch up with me later, and I'll answer your question."

Cal nodded and watched James go, thinking about their match and about the Mega Stone once again. One day he'd unlock it's secrets, and he intended for that day to be soon.

Rattles looked down, trying to process what she'd just seen. When she'd finished, she poked at Callimer's foot with one of her feelers to get his attention. "What emotion was that?" She asked.

"Frustration and shame...on my part." Cal said sullenly. "If you're asking about James I'm not sure, sometimes for just a bit I feel like I get him, then he's back to being an enigma. I feel like I understand Penance better than I do him. I don't know if you'll end up meeting him or not, long-story-short he's a schizophrenic Golduck."

The Ferrothorn stared at Cal blankly for several seconds, her segments rotating slowly as she did. When she finally stopped, she wrote, "I'm going to the library." Without waiting for a response, she erased the letters, lifted her body with her feelers, and rotated it so it was sideways, then began quickly spinning all her segments besides the one that housed her eyes. She then dropped herself onto the ground, taking off rolling in the direction of the fort.

Cal just watched Rattles leave and blinked a few extra times when she was out of sight. Well, she's certainly interesting. I can't wait to see if she fights as uniquely as she communicates.

 

[Turnip]

Grand Debate: Garbodor Vs Racks
Featuring Guardia, Razathiel and ice cream​

"Hey! Racks!" Guardia shouted from behind the Dreadmage. She was running toward the smaller 'mon following his disgruntled departure from the meeting. For obvious reasons, it didn't take long for the Zangoose to catch up to the 'mon. She ran forward in front of the Ralts and cut him off to a stop. "Just making sure you're good."

"I'm not good!" The Ralts shouted fiercely in reply. "I'm evil! And my name is not Racks! My name is Raz!" He threw his arms up in the air. "All the common decency to have a name that shortens to one syllable, and this is what I get for it!"

"That's what I said!" Guardia yelled back. She rolled her eyes. "Whatever, yeah, just making sure you didn't blow a fuse. I know you didn't like the outcome, but as of now there's value in keeping Roxanna alive."

"I did blow a fuse! I'm still blowing fuses- you definitely said Racks, you've been intermittently mispronouncing my name since Gold City!"

"Stay focused! I'm talking about Roxanna now, Ralts!" Guardia exclaimed.

"R-ralts?!" Raz cried, gripping his head with both hands. "Are you mispronouncing my name again or just calling me by species for no discernible reason!?"

Guardia snapped her fingers. "Arceus, focus!" She declared to the Dreadmage. "Roxanna, are you over it or not? Do I have something to be worried about?"

"Of course I'm over it! It's still a stupid idea, but it's not like I can do anything about it because everyone else is in charge and nobody has a fucking brain!" The Ralts flopped over onto his back and took a few heavy breaths.

Guardia was considering making a retort, but decided against it. She knew Raz could be volatile, and didn't wish to risk angering him, especially when she was so exhausted herself. "I'm just making sure. Don't worry, we'll make sure nothing happens. I will, at least."

"You can keep on saying that," The Dreadmage droned. "But it's her opportunity to fail."

"If she tries to and succeeds, she likely won't get another shot, if you know what I mean," Guardia insinuated.

"Oh, she'll die all right," Raz said, perking his head up for a moment. "That was never the problem, she doesn't really stand any sort of chance of getting away alive, definitely not. The problem is how much damage she can potentially do on the way down to her inevitable demise."

"I don't intend to let her do any," Guardia stated firmly. She then eased up a bit and continued. "Just try not to cause too much damage on the sidelines if anything does happen, alright? We did have an agreement."

"Which agreement was this, exactly?" The wizard asked, clearly still miffed. "It seems we've had several agreements all bunched up into a single large one."

"About not killing innocents," Guardia enlightened as she crossed her arms. "And I think we need a refresher about that whole topic anyway, especially after that talk we had about killing on the road in Anatellia."

"Hmm," After a short pause, Raz groaned and flipped himself up onto his feet. He promptly turned and began walking away. "Fine, let's talk," He called behind him. "But let's move. I need some fucking comfort food."

"Alright, lead the way," Guardia agreed, hearing her own stomach growl soon after Raz made the comments about food. She had spent most of the day not eating.

"So," Razathiel began as the Zangoose caught up to him. "I believe I mentioned this back in Anatellia, Marmalade, but our definitions of 'innocence' may well be misaligned. I need something concrete, because I'd rather not be hesitating on the verge of important decisions."

"Uh..." Guardia scratched the back of her head. "It's a harder thing to define during war. About what's innocent and what's not. Why don't you start by giving me your definition."

"Well," The Ralts let out a bitter chuckle. "My personal definition is entirely irrelevant - I've been going by what I thought yours would be, at a guess. Which is... erm, well, not entirely clear- I suppose, a person who isn't of particular threat to our mission, or someone who isn't able to defend themselves. Though I'm not entirely sure where the borders are cut, there, or what happens when the two overlap, or how to account for the possibility of trickery. Really, all your moral bullshit blurs the lines between everything."

"That definition seems pretty accurate, but it's that second part that's a bit more blurred," Guardia explained. "Not being able to defend themselves can, in my book, extend to prisoners of war, or 'mon who have surrendered too, like Roxanna had. This is the only reason why I have agreed to take her with us. We don't kill those who can't fight anymore."

"So when do you kill people?" Raz snapped. "I suppose you folks of the so-called 'Gold Tribe' must have led pretty sheltered lives, if you fail to realise that some 'mon are simply too dangerous to leave alive."

"We kill when 'mon don't surrender," Guardia began to answer. "We kill when we're given no choice. We kill in war. We kill to protect others. There's plenty of times when we do. But when there ever is an alternative, I would like to take it. That's the standard I hold the tribe to."

"And, so... you calculate all of these variables on the fly, and adjust your damage to match? No wonder you can't tell how terrible an idea letting Rox live is, all your brain power is being diverted to moral assessment," Raz rolled his eyes as he came upon the small shop named 'The Iced Cream', breathing a contented sigh as he opened the door and felt the cold air on his face. "Ah, the crisp cold. Just like I'm back in Anatellia- ICE CREAM!" The mage suddenly raised his voice. "ONE CHOCOLATE."

Guardia walked in behind the Ralts and ordered behind him. "One for me too, please," She asked politely, and looked back down at Raz. "I wouldn't say it's all diverted to that, besides, since when did you become the expert on decisions anyway?"

"Erm- yes," The Quagsire behind the counter cleared his throat somewhat nervously, but soon composed himself and called behind him. "That'll be two standard chocolates!"

"Roger, Bernard!" Called a Nuzleaf from another room.

"Yes, those are our names, but did you get the order?"

"If you could just not do that, for once, Bernard, that would be great."

"That was eventful," Razathiel murmured with a raised eyebrow, before waddling over to a seat and addressing the Zangoose once more. Guardia did the same. "The problem is, Guardia, I'm not an expert on decisions. That is exactly my point- and as pinpoint and precise I can be with psychic energy, attacking to incapacitate and not to kill isn't something I'm particularly experienced with."

"Then what's to say that every time you make an opinion, it's the right one?" Guardia questioned as she sat opposite of the Ralts. "Your say will get as much consideration as the rest, but everyone has a voice here. And it's my job to pick out which I believe are the right ones, by my own standards. I knew the moment Roxanna surrendered that killing her on the spot was a bad move, but I at least asked the rest of ya."

"I'm not saying that every opinion I'm going to form on people is right straight away," Raz said, crossing his arms. "At first meeting, sure- feel free to pry holes in whatever I think of someone. The thing is, here, Roxanna is dangerous as long as she's able to do literally anything. She was practically crippled, and still she tried to convince James to turncoat - James is another problem, too, and yet another 'mon I probably should have killed to save myself the trouble."

"I agree she's still dangerous," Guardia replied with a nod. "But as of now she's no danger to us. If she tries anything, as I said before don't expect her to stay around long. And we're going to make sure she doesn't cause any damage. James..." Her voice trailed off and she shook her head. "Tell me honestly, do you believe you can beat him? I mean, I haven't seen him fight yet at all. But he has a Mega Stone. And he had all of those Sons running scared. It has to have been for something."

"In a fair fight, I believe so, yes," Razathiel said assuredly. "Not without difficulty, however- his strength, though, is my exact reason to be so troubled by his presence. To think that at any point in battle, an enemy could just wave a big bag of gold in front of his face and take control of him? The fact that he even hesitated when Roxanna proposed a deal makes me sick to my stomach - with two bastards continuing to live, a constant danger to us all and the mission, it's..." The wizard grimaced, obviously tense. "It irks me, to say the least, just thinking about it. I'm not used to having such conflicted motives, Guardia."

"... I'm actually in agreement with you," Guardia stated with a sigh. "Having James around like this is a problem. I've tried to talk to Snype about it, but he thinks it's a good idea still. I dunno, maybe you can convince him it's not? Might be worth a try, ah thanks!" She exclaimed as the ice cream was brought before her. The Dreadmage perked up immediately at the sight of ice cream in front of him, jumping up from his seat to the table to get better access. He immediately grabbed the spoon and flung a large scoop into his mouth enthusiastically.

"Mmm, er- aghem, sorry. Ice cream." After quickly swallowing, the Ralts pointed to the bowl to his side, as though it wasn't obvious where the ice cream was. "The, er- Snype! Erm... well, I can certainly try to talk some sense into him. Whether we convince Snype or not, though, the question still remains as to how the bloody hell we deal with keeping him away from this whole Darkrai fuckery; it'd hardly surprise me if, after we let him go, the dark bastard's forces immediately bought him right back up again."

"Yeah, that seems likely... unless we can somehow convince him to go to someone or somewhere that can afford him?" Guardia thought with a shrug. "Someplace that had the means to finance him. More long-term."

"For such an extortionate price, I don't like our chances."

"Me neither... let's see what Snype has to say about it," Guardia replied with a nod. "I'll leave that bit to you. Keep me updated on that."

"Hmm, very well," Raz agreed, taking another spoon of ice cream and stirring it absent-mindedly. "So, just to check- that's if they won't surrender, in war, to protect others when given no choice?"

"Right," Guardia responded with a nod of her head. She grabbed the spoon in front of her and dove into the chocolaty goodness herself. "No harming those who surrender, who can't protect themselves, and the innocent."

"All right. I think I can just about manage that, Jugular," Razathiel said with a hint of glee as he went again for ice cream.

"Good, good," Guardia nodded as she dove into her own delicious treat. "So, anything else on your mind?"

"Quite possibly, Garbodor," Raz raised an eyebrow at the Zangoose before glancing around the ice cream shop. "Though not much I can openly discuss in such... well, let's just say I think it's safe to say that Snype kept his word as far as giving this place a good mention goes."

Guardia cocked an eyebrow. "Uh-huh..." She looked around. "Save it for another place, then?"

"That's probably for the best, Galvantula."

"Enjoy you- did you just call me Galvantula?" Guardia inquired with a raised eyebrow.

"Yes!" Raz exclaimed. "Of course I did! I think I've said your name perhaps once in this entire conversation! Fucking hell, I was getting worried for a while that you weren't going to pick up on it- do you even-?" The wizard seemed to give up on his train of thought, rather abruptly turning to eat yet more ice cream.

Guardia shrugged. "Guess I don't usually pay attention to what others call me. Comes with the job when you get a lot of weirdos shoutin' all kinds of things."

"If you don't pay attention, how the bloody hell do you know people are addressing you?" Razathiel cried. "You just assume every word called out is intended for you? You just assume none of the words called out are-? How do you function in battle!? Fucking hell- now I think about it, I'm not surprised you get people shouting all kinds of things, seeing as your name's a bloody mouthful- let's see, we've got Raz, Cal, Kav, Anne, Ben, James, Snype, Ob, I guess, and Guar-dee-ah, the three-syllable name with no convenient shortened form- 'Oh, but weirdos call me different names so I'll take it out on someone else with a name that's perfectly fine and convenient for any and all situations' - well it's your own fault! Or your parents' fault, or whatever- or yours, because you should change your name, or something so that people stop calling you- wait, I've never seen anyone call you anything other than Guardia perfectly; are you sure you're not just imagining the entire thing and just taking it out on me despite the fact that the problem is non-existent purely because you have a vendetta against me for no good reason because you're a bloody prick? That's just mean- I need some more ice cream."

Guardia gazed at Raz as he made his rant, then chuckled after he was done. "You know, Guardia's not actually my name, right? It's my Gold Tribe title. Everyone just calls me it because before I took over, everyone in the Gold Tribe only referred to each other by their titles. I still do it sometimes, but I encouraged a lot of the new Gold Tribes'mon to use their actual names. Because I felt it made us less... well, never mind. You would hear me sometimes call Kav Jetstream, or Cal Sentinel. But really... my name's Lyn."

"Pff, no it isn't," The wizard said dismissively. "You're kidding me- there's no way you had a perfectly usable name and just up and replaced it with something far less convenient, that'd be stupid."

"Sure I did," Guardia replied with a nod. "It's Gold Tribe tradition. A title is a term of respect someone owns. It's not about convenience."

"Well sure, but couldn't you just... use both interchangeably, or something? Like, shit- 'Lyn'? Seriously? One syllable? And you don't even use it- nobody uses it! How am I supposed to even begin on the road to being able to use a single-syllable word to address you when not even your bloody cohorts do it? Lyn? Blegh. Far too personal. I mean, usually I'd have to wait until it's moderately commonplace even amongst enemies, so there's no way I can even bloody attempt it at this stage. Bloody hell..." The Dreadmage, thoroughly annoyed, took another large scoop of ice cream to calm himself down.

Guardia shrugged. "Stick with Guardia, then," She answered casually. "It's not like it's a big deal to me. Why do you get so worked up about these things?"

"What things?" Raz questioned with one eyebrow raised.

"Small issues like these," Guardia continued with a small smirk. "Names, dresses, things like that?"

"Small issues?" The wizard repeated with a frown. "The name issue is perhaps small, I'll give you that- though that stems from the fact that you constantly mispronounce my name. Not all the time, but constantly. A name, mind you, that I've so kindly provided in a way that is as short and easy to pronounce as possible. You might say you don't do it, but you do. As for the 'other things'..." Razathiel paused for a moment to think. "Well, let's just say that I have a certain reputation I wish to maintain - I'm sure you can understand that, being a reputable public figure amongst those you live with. The difference between us in the sense of keeping up appearances is that I have had to, and continue to struggle tooth-and-nail to succeed in doing so. Believe me, in my position any slight, no matter how small, is worth contesting."

"I guess a 'mon of your..." She stopped herself at that point. "Yeah I guess I can understand that. It makes sense."

"Good," Raz nodded in reply. "Evil, rather. No, you're the subject- you're not evil. Acceptable, that's the word. Got it. Glad we could come to a kind of understanding - try not to flip out when I inevitably become agitated over what many would consider 'small' misgivings. Like Kaveri with her incessant name-calling, for instance, though it has been a little while."

"Yeah, I get you," She responded with a nod of her own, as she brought the last spoonful of ice cream to her mouth to finish her bowl. "Ah, that hit the spot."

"Been enlightened to the deliciousness of chocolate confectionery, have you?" The Ralts asked, scooping up and plopping into his mouth a single scoop of ice cream that seemed too impossibly large to be edible for a 'mon of his size.

"I gotta admit, it's pretty damn good," Guardia agreed.

"Good?" Razathiel repeated with one eyebrow raised.

"It's pretty damn evil," Guardia corrected herself with a small smirk.

"No," The wizard corrected her with a roll of his eyes. "Ice cream is widely accepted as delicious by all alignments, thank you very much."

"I was just trying to... ugh never mind," She replied as she rolled her eyes.

The Ralts only cocked his head and gave the Zangoose a quizzical look in reply before turning to his dwindling ice cream and finishing it off. As neither of the two seemed to have anything left to say, Raz was left idly pushing his spoon around in the remnants of his dessert. Guardia meanwhile looked around the store to try and spot something interesting. After a few moments of awkward silence, he cleared his throat, but unfortunately he didn't actually speak, instead throwing a few expectant glances in Guardia's direction.

"Hmm, did you say something?" Guardia asked, breaking the silence.

"Hmm? No, I was just..." The Dreadmage let out an angry sigh, flopping from the table back down to his seat. "How the fuck do you people deal with this? I'm bored."

"Deal with what?" Guardia asked, trying desperately to find something to talk about with the Ralts.

"What do you mean, 'what'? That!" Raz cried out as though it were obvious. "Honestly, I had no idea going into this that it'd be so mind-numbingly boring being unable to perform my usual wizardly activities. I've been reduced to seeking enjoyment in petty conversation, for fuck's sake."

"What exactly constitutes as normal wizardly activities?" Guardia inquired.

"Just the regular stuff," Razathiel shrugged as he slumped in his seat. "Adventuring and all of that. Searching for power, lost secrets, ancient tomes. Eliminating rivals, or otherwise anyone with the audacity to attack me. Lots of travelling. Training. Never really a lull in doing something."

"I guess you've been doing some of that on this trip," Guardia commented. "But everyone's gotta rest eventually before we can continue doing those things. Don't you need some rest too?"

"Living as I do - or did, I suppose - gets you pretty used to having little to no rest. I don't particularly need it, and I don't particularly know how you bastards enjoy it."

Guardia cocked an eyebrow at the 'bastards' comment, but decided to brush it off and continue. "Why not take up some reading? We've picked up a few books recently in Anatellia. They might have some stuff we could use."

"I've probably already read most of them. If you can find a hundred or so, maybe, but I've spent a good portion - evil portion, rather - of my life reading through ancient tomes and the like, so even a fairly hefty one like the few we got back at the altar only take me about an hour at most."

"Damn, you're a fast reader..." Guardia muttered. "Did you read through the stuff we recently got too? There might be something useful in there. And you seem to know about old things more so you may be able to pick up on stuff the rest of us won't."

"Yeah, sure, I'll get around to it," The wizard said dismissively with a wave of his hand. "But four books isn't really something that'll keep me busy for long. What else am I supposed to do? Waste away in the pits of idle chatter? What the bloody hell do you do for fun? I suppose you're probably still busy - not like there's anything stopping you from carrying on with your regular work."

"I guess I still have stuff to do, but I just wanted to make sure everything was cool with you before I got to it," Guardia explained. "Now that I have... Oh!" She suddenly recalled something as she reached into her bag. She pulled out what appeared to be the Mega Stone Gaiyo handed to her and threw it toward Raz. "Hold this for a second?"

"Oh, is this your idea of fun?" Razathiel asked, rolling his eyes as he caught the Mega Stone lazily. "A game of catch? How very fucking invigorating..."

A slight spark emitted from the Mega Stone as Raz touched it, causing Guardia to smile. "Go figure! First 'mon I hand it to, and it's a match!" She stated with a smile. Her face quickly formed into a small frown soon after though. "Err... not sure if it'll work on you though..."

"Oh, erm... yeah, that's something..." The wizard sat up, taking a moment to inspect the Mega Stone in his hands. "I believe it is thought that mega evolution is only possible for those in their final evolutionary stage, but I suppose it could just be that none of those 'mon were me..." In a moment of realisation, Raz turned his head back up towards the Zangoose. "You're not just going to give this to me, are you?"

"I'm gonna let you try to fiddle and use it," Guardia answered. "You know, in case we need it at some point later. Something tells me we might," She stated. "But I figure you won't abuse it since you probably read the other stuff about Mega Stones, and how they kill you if you keep using them."

"Yeah, I guess that makes sense," The Ralts shrugged, tossing the Mega Stone into his Magic Room. "That'll be nice for taking up a little more of my time. Not entirely sure how much, though."

"Maybe enough until we decide where we're going next," Guardia stated with a shrug. "Any initial opinions on that, by the way?"

"Well, I'm curious on how the help we've sent to Beatruce has been doing, but really, aside from that I'm not particularly bothered," Raz explained. "I'll just go wherever the group chooses - though perhaps in light of new information I'll change my mind. You never know. What do you think?"

"I dunno," Guardia stated with a shrug. "Knowing exactly who and where Cresselia's spirit is definitely is leaning me toward Beatruce. Plus, Abel's been pressing us to go there for a while... with the plague still going on there, I don't know if we can afford to put it off any longer."

"To be honest, even from the beginning, it didn't seem like we could afford to put anywhere off for a particularly long time," Raz noted, before shrugging. Guardia nodded in agreement. "But eh, what can you do? Did you actually have any suggestions besides catch, by the way? Because I'd really rather not be bored out of my mind."

"Excuse me, Guardia and Razathiel the Dreadmage," The familiar voice of Wraith was heard from the side of the two 'mon. Upon hearing this voice. Guardia quickly rose from her seat.

"Sorry, Wraith, I have very important Gold Tribe leader duties to attend to, can't talk now! Talk with Raz instead!" She yelled as she ran as fast as she could out of the ice cream shop.

"What the fuck?!" Razathiel jumped up and cried as he was abandoned to the mercy of the thing that wouldn't shut up. "Guardia, you fucking bitch, get back here! Giratina fucking damn it!" He turned to the Dusknoir with a dangerous look in his eyes. "State your business and make it fucking quick, lest I end the fuck out of you."

"Your ally is in distress," Wraith began to say. "It is from an unknown enemy of which I have very little experience. This enemy, if you can really refer to it as that, is with Obsidian now, and if we do not help him, I fear of what may become of him. I therefore humbly ask you, Razathiel the Dreadmage, to accompany me so that we may go and see if we can help Obsidian conquer this-"

"Let's roll, fuckface," Raz snapped as he hopped down from his seat. "Hope it's someone I can kill- I get the feeling I'll be needing some stress relief pretty soon."

 

[Greiger]

Facing Death​

Obsidian grumbled to himself as he sat outside of the fort. He honestly wanted to be alone at the moment, especially with the s**t storm that he had gone through. What was he expected to do? Suddenly do some sort of recruitment campaign and get a legion of troops battle ready within a few days? Perhaps if he had time... but he had no time. He had little of anything left. Any smart mon would have headed off with Penance... but he wouldn't. It was all one big kick in the teeth, if he could be honest. And at this point, he knew that Penance's strategic mind would place them at a further disadvantage. He was, after all, the one guy to kill Gold Tribe before Darkrai waltzed into town. How could this day get any worse?

"You seem unwell, Obsidian," The familiar Gold Tribe Dusknoir Wraith commented beside the Weavile. "Are you feeling unwell? Did you perhaps catch something in Anatellia? I hear it's quite cold there, is that the reason? Or are you perhaps not as much sick as you are saddened? Are you feeling upset that you had to leave your friends in Anatellia? I do believe that you mentioned that you had a much more stronger relationship with the Anatellians than the Gold Tribe did. The Gold Tribe do not really have a strong relationship with the Anatellians, they weren't allowed much room in there when we made first contact. Oh, but I'm sure you already knew about that. So is that the reason why you are like this? Or is there another reason behind your trouble-"

By that point, Obsidian struck out. He quickly got up from his seated position as a clawed hand and struck right into Wraith's stomach... well, being a ghost certainly neglected the dangerous impact that such an attack would have on him. "Shut up!" Obsidian snapped out. Tears streamed down from the Weavile's eyes as he pushed his clawed hand deeper into the phantom's stomach, "You don't think I f**king know what's being said!? How I'm suddenly being blamed for Penance going awol? How I will be remembered in the history books for not being good enough to take down my own father!?" He pulled his hand out of Wraith's gassy form, "Well? Happy that you got my reaction now?" He spat as he turned about and sat down once more.

"..." The usually chatty Gold Tribe member floated silently for a few seconds, just observing the Weavile. "... I apologize, Obsidian. I wasn't aware of that information. Penance has gone awol? That is certainly not a good thing. I wasn't exactly blaming you for it, though. I hadn't even realized it happened. I was simply stating that you looked upset, and I was not aware why you were upset. Now that I know, allow me to be the first to say that my sympathies are with you. I am curious as to why the Golduck has gone awol, as you say. When you say that, I assume you mean that he has abandoned our side. Has he also jo-"

"Please..." Obsidian hissed out, "Just.... please be quiet for a bit. If you're so keen on information ask anyone else. Practically everyone is already in the know. Go ahead and let them tell you about how I'm a ba***rd or something. I don't care." He wiped at his eyes, "I have a job to do. If you want to talk s**t behind my back, go ahead."

Once more, the ghost type merely floated there for a moment in silence, before he continued to speak again. "There is only one Pokemon that I know of that I can with whole certainty refer to as a bastard, and his name is General James Jiles. Have you heard of General James Jiles? Most certainly not, I believe. He has been dead for quite some time now, over fifty years, in fact. But he was a General of the Alpha Alliance over one hundred years ago, when an organization called the Order of Neoverse was invading our country. He wasn't a very good General. I found that out as much when I contacted him in the spirit world. Not purposefully, mind you, it was a matter of chance that it happened. My main point is, I would not consider calling you a bast-

"Wraith..." Obsidain said as he held out a hand, "... Look... just... I need some time alone. You're not necessarily helping me here." He lowered his hand and let out a sigh, "If you want to talk to me, then I need someone to talk to over this, and to be blunt, you're not doing a good job of making me feel better."

"I see... I suppose I will just leave you to it," Wraith answered with a nod. "I should probably return to my duties anyway. There has been an influx of new refugees daily, and there are few Gold Tribes'mon in the fort to handle all of them ourselves. General Warren has teleported in some portions of Alpha Alliance soldiers to assist us, but unfortunately, they may not be enough to do the trick. If there is nothing else, I shall depart from you."

Obsidian let out a weak sigh, "... So, how long before we all die?" He asked Wraith, "I mean... we have the Seekers against us, the armies of Darkrai... and just pure invincible mon." He lowered his head, "We have no idea where the last part of Cresselia is. Who knows if that part was in Valkaria, or if it might have already been destroyed by Darkrai? It's going to take not only a miracle, but also the planets aligning while there is a full moon, three coin flips guessed in correct order, plus receiving a divine blessing from Arceus himself for us to win this war."

"Would Darkrai destroy that piece of Cresselia if he found it?" Wraith questioned as he stopped himself from leaving and continued to float beside the Weavile. "I remember from hearing from Guardia about the Guardians that if he does, it will simply be reborn somewhere else. So if it is destroyed, won't it just reappear somewhere else? In that case, he would lose it and have to find it all over again, which means more work for him. If I were him, I would simply take it and keep it somewhere, so that others couldn't have it. I suppose that is what he did with the Queen of Tollen, right? That is probably why Darkrai chose to be there. To remain by the Queen's side and keep her weak and separated. So that he wou-"

Obsidian just hung his head, "... You know, I should have you as a drinking buddy." The Weavile let out a pitiful laugh, "Oh, you sure know how to take a situation, and make it worse." He rubbed at his forehead, "So, basically, at worst case he is keeping the item in his home camp, guarded behind millions... no, probably billions of soldiers. And the best part is that we lose if that's the case." He gripped his temples, "... Yup. Best thing to know ever. Certainly kills the hopeful mood. You drink a lot, right? Cause I am really wanting to hammer down a good number of brews at the moment."

"Drinks do not agree with me," The ghost type commented. "And I do apologize if I made you feel worse, I was only offering my opinion. I do believe the situation to be quite disadvantageous for us, but I do not believe in a no-win situation either. I would rather simply go on with my duties and try to do my best to ensure that it was not due to a lack of efforts on my part that we had failed. I also wish to express that I do not actually believe we have a way of beating Darkrai and his flock conventionally. Fighting toe to toe with a legendary is nearly impossible. I say nearly because many had heard stories about one or two of yours actually fighting the Dark One himself in Tollen. I have not completely confirmed the rumors, but something tells me that the stories are in some part true. If they are, they I am at least a bit more at ease. Though, again, I do not believe that our odds are good without Cresselia's assistance in this matter. If I am to understand it, however, Darkrai had attempted something similar to this many thousands of years ago, and failed. If he has failed once, perhaps we can make him fail again. This, however, goes again with the fact that we do really need Cresselia on our side to ensure that it would happen. So it is of the utmost importance that we keep the Queen of Tollen secure, as well a-"

"He won't fail." Obsidian muttered out, "He's going to keep going. He's always going to win. He's always going to be here. And he's going to just come back in another thousand years if we beat him here. It's never going to end." He stood back up, "Thanks... I guess." He looked down at the small item he held in his palm, "... Sometimes I think it would be easier if death claimed us all."

Wraith pondered this for a few seconds before his answer. "Interesting thought. I think I will ask that question in my next seance. It is a curious topic which I haven't nearly explored enough. Though I think perhaps there are certain rules against it which would prevent me from actually learning about it in full. The bridge of life and death, after all, is one which should be trea-"

"Am I needed here?" Obsidian asked him, "The only reason I came was because I was with Penance. I'm not smart like him, I'm not strong either. I'm not even sure if I could defend myself if the army broke through these walls. Should I even be here in the fort?"

"So are you suggesting that you were brought here only because Penance wanted you to come with him?" The ghost type pondered. "Interesting, in which case you may have just been slowing him down, in which case I do believe that Penance may have had a bit of an anchor carrying him down the entire time because of that. But that wouldn't make sense. Would he really risk that much on a mission like this before he went awol on just the thought of keeping you safe? I imagine the degree of difficulty of your mission meant running into all manner of difficult things, which means that this is in fact the tougher of the two assignments, between Gold City and your mission. And even if he were only trying to keep you safe, would he not have just left you in Fo-"

"Should I even be here?" Obsidian spat out. "Just give me a yes or no. Because I don't have the numbers, I don't have the strength, hell, by this point even the damn army in Valkaria is better than the scraps I have. Am I third wheel? Yes, or no?"

"No," Wraith stated plainly. "It doesn't make sense in this case if you are. He would leave you in the protection of Fort Ferrol if you were, which is much safer than your mission or Gold City. Which means he either knew you had something to offer or he is not a good planner. Since we know he is a good planner, that means that you have something to offer, and the reason you don't believe you do is because you are sad, which is what I was trying to confirm when I first got here. So I now know the reason why you are sad, and part of the reason on why you are sulking. It would make sense, in this case, specifically after losing something, or in this case someone, like an ally, that would make you believe that you have nothing to contribute. But I believe that it must be wrong in this case, mostly because it wouldn't make sense either way if he did. Why else would you be here with us then? I do not believe you asked to be here. And I do not believe the others would have allowed you to remain if you truly did not have something to offer. Not that I am saying that you are on the same par as some, as I know that some of them are qu-"

Obsidian fell silent at that as he thought about Wraith's words. "... I see." He closed his eyes, "But what do I have now? I have... what? A hundred or less Torch Bearers, all outclassed by the Seekers' training and sheer numbers, and a mon who can't measure up to Penance's intellect or planning. What do I DO?"

"Interesting," Wraith muttered as he turned around. "I am not quite familiar with you as I should be. I believe my best interest may be to find someone who is more familiar with you and to allow them to talk to you and examine the situation a bit better. In which case I will, if you permit me, to observe while you two talk, so that I can get a better idea of who you are. After that, the next time we have a discussion of this level, I will be able to an-"

"Alright." Obsidian said as he rubbed at his temples once more, "I get it. I get it."

"I do not," Wraith replied. "Did you want me to go get someone else so you can talk about your feelings with him? I do not know if that is what you meant when you said, 'I get it. I get it,' or if you meant that you wished me to stop conversing with you right now. In which case I can also leave you to your thou-"

"Yes, sure!" Obsidian cried out desperately, "Go and get someone!"

"I'll be back soon," Wraith commented and began to float away. He could be heard continuing to talk to himself as he moved away from Obsidian.

Obsidian just sat down, feeling very relieved that the ghost had floated on off. Note to self, NEVER talk to Wraith again! Never ever in a million years! He had heard stories, sure, but this honestly took the cake from anything he had yet to experience. He was honestly surprised that the Dusknoir hadn't instead joined some sort of marketing firm. He would drive half the customers to ordering anything so long as it would make him shut up. Still... he could count it as a nice... er... way to get his mind off of things? He supposed, though he would rather have had that Wraith not approach him in the first place. He doubted that anyone would come back with the Dusknoir, so Obsidian could consider himself safe for now.

"Excuse me, Obsidian?" The familiar voice of Wraith asked from behind the moping Weavile. "I have brought you someone, as requested. You are, of course, familiar with Razathiel the Dreadmage, as you have been traveling with him for the past couple of months or so? He is here to assist you with your problem."

Obsidian let out one of the loudest groans he could muster, "You know what? I think it's best if I just... walk away from this fort for a bit." He said as he stood up, "Just walk out and just sit on a rock somewhere... anywhere but here."

"So what the fuck am I supposed to be doing here?" Raz asked Wraith, tapping his foot impatiently. "Who is this enemy? Is it you? Honestly, I wouldn't be surprised if it were you."

Obsidian just stared at Raz, turned, and began to walk out, "Thanks for nothing, Wraith." He called back, "But I think I would rather want a feral to eat my corpse than having to talk to the lord of darkness who will, more than likely, just do anything he could to piss me off and berate me."

"Obsidian, wait, you asked me to get someone, didn't you?" Wraith asked as it floated beside Raz now. "Razathiel is here to help you with your feelings. That is the enemy that needs conquering. Obsidian would like to talk to someone about it, and I believe since you two are companions, you would be perfect to have this conversation with each othe-"

"Are you fucking kidding me?" Razathiel asked disappointedly. "You brought me to help with feelings? Just how stupid are you!?" He shook his head in frustration. "Well, seems to be as I suspected. Obsidian, go ahead and leave if you want. I'll try my best not to completely murder this... eugh..."

Obsidian stopped walking, and stood there for a moment. Then he spoke, just loud enough for Raz to hear, "F**k you..."

"I do not understand," Wraith continued with a puzzled look on his ghostly face. "Is something amiss? Are you two not on friendly terms? Or is there something else going on that I am unaware of? Perh-"

"That's right. You don't understand. You don't understand anything. You just talk. That is all you do. You talk and never shut up. Let me say this very clearly. I am not on 'friendly terms' with Obsidian, nor am I on 'friendly terms' with anyone in this blasted world. What we do appear to share, however, is a very justified hatred of anything expelling itself from your mouth - or arse, not entirely sure which - regardless, if you could try shutting up for a single minute of-"

Obsidian had turned about as Raz spoke and marched right up to the Ralts. In little to no short order one fist shot out to slam into the Ralt's face, "I said... f**k you." He hissed out. "When I say that, you shut up like the b***h you are." He pointed a finger down at the psychic, "I've had enough of your bullshit." The Dreadmage was knocked to the floor with an 'oof' by the sudden punch, but twisted on the ground and immediately threw a blast of fire back at the Weavile.

"You piece of shit!" He cried venomously as he jumped to his feet and took a few steps back. "What the fuck is wrong with you?"

"I'm sick and tired of you, that's what!" Obsidian let the fire blast hit him, grunting as he was pushed back. He remained on his feet as his eyes glowed. He held out both hands and let out a shout. The weather took a sudden change for the worse as dark clouds boomed overhead. Snow began to fall and soon fierce winds whipped up. The Weavile let out another shout as a fierce Blizzard quickly overtook the area, "I'm tired of your prickness!" He shouted out, "And I'm tired of you being a d**k to everyone! And I"m tired of your smug attitude!" The blizzard got thicker and thicker as Obsidian backed up, disappearing into the fierce snowstorm that waged on. "Try finding me now."

"As much as I'd like to leave you here to die," Razathiel growled to Wraith as he did his best to shield himself against the freezing winds with bursts of his Hidden Power. "It probably wouldn't look too good for me in the eyes of the others, so we'd both best get the fuck out of here."

As Raz spoke a hand suddenly reached out from the ground, gripping onto the mage's cloak and with a firm tug sought to bring him down into the small tunnel that the Weavile had dug out. Another hand moved to slice along the Ralts' body. Just as the Weavile would try to grab at the cloak of the Dreadmage and strike at him, the Dusknoir swiftly floated by and struck at Obsidian's fist with a Fire Punch to knock him back.

"Why are you two fighting? This is unbelievable!" Wraith cried as he separated the two with that. He nodded to Raz. "Perhaps it would be best if we were to separate from this 'mon at the current time. Clearly bringing you to talk to him was not the best move. I should have gone with someone with a more approachable attitude. I may tr-"

"For once I just want mon to shut up!" Obsidian snapped. The burn along his hand hurt, but that didn't slow the Weavile down for long, especially in his current emotional state. "Want to know why I attacked!?" He cried out. "Because... I don't know." He threw his hands up in the air, "And honestly I don't care. Yeah, I'm leader of the year! Can't even control my own f**king emotions!"

"Just bloody terrific," Razathiel muttered, snatching his staff from his Magic Room. "And honestly I thought I'd be the first one to try to murder anyone here... you know if you could stop this fucking blizzard any time soon, that'd be juuuust great."

Obsidian just closed his eyes and sat on down as the hail began to gradually die down, eventually ceasing all together. The Weavile huffed there, not saying much. Raz simply began to edge away awkwardly, a little miffed that someone had just tried to murder him.

As the hail finally died down, Wraith glanced between the Ralts and the Weavile and coughed uncomfortably, before he decided to break the silence. "You know, this reminds me of the time that I first met up with one of my companions in the Gold Tribe, Reaper. I do not know if you have had the pleasure of meeting Reaper before, but he wasn't always as level-headed as he is now. He was once quite a hot-head of a Pokemon. But as he trav- hmm? Razathiel, where are you going?"

"Away," The wizard replied bluntly, already a fair distance from the other two.

"... Maybe... I don't know." Obsidian just sighed, "Now this is going to be the talk of the fort. Crazy Weavile tries to kill an ally of the Gold Tribe. More at six." He rubbed at his face, "Dear Arceus, I'm a wreck."

"Well, it is a good thing you didn't succeed," Wraith stated with a nod. "I suppose doing the deed versus attempting to do it is a consolation. That, and I do believe that Ralts is much more capable of a fighter than many others here in Fort Ferrol. Killing him will be quite difficult, if at all possible... would you like me to go fetch him? I feel as though he may still have something to contribute to the current situation at hand. Or perh-"

Obsidian decided it was best NOT to remain silent at that point, and spoke, "There's really no one left..." He said softly, "I mean... Guardia knows me a bit, just because Penance would drag me over to her place at times. I mean... we aren't friends. The only reason I know the others is because of one reason. Penance. Do any of them even know my likes? Dislikes? I barely know any of theirs. How can I even call them acquaintances if I don't know them?"

"Guardia seemed to be busy the last time I attempted to grab her, so in almost certainty, I expect her to still be busy... it is an unfortunate situation you find yourself in," Wraith continued. "I do feel as if I have exhausted what I can to assist you at this point, however. And my guard duty is approaching. So I must either find you another partner to help assist with your condition soon, or find a way to leave you in a well enough and sound condition as to relieve the pressure I feel inside of my brain, which at this point is quite high due to the current situation. Not just of you or any one 'mon in specific, mind you. It's more a combination of things. Darkrai, for one. In fact, Darkrai probably most especially. I still cannot fathom how this all ha-"

Obsidian stood up and sighed, "I don't know what to say. No one knows me here." He gave the weakest of shrugs, "I'm never going to be in their little club honestly. It's already too late for that path. No one's around that can really help me. Penance is gone, every Seeker I ever had an inkling of knowing is gone.. so I honestly have no one here. So... just get going. You can't help even if you did your hardest to help."

"... I see," Wraith murmured. "It is too bad you have no family or friends to communicate with since they are gone," He seemed to frown. "Penance being your father does pose a problem. Though I am curious how he produced you, unless of course your mother was a Weavi-"

"He didn't produce me." Obsidian muttered out. "My family is all Weavile. My dad, my mom..." He shook his head, "Mom died years ago, a bit after the first war. Dad died in Karn soon after. I just... got taken up by Penance. I was first born, so no chance of any surprise siblings." He looked out at the sun, "... Maybe that's the reason I'm so f**ked up. Who knows?"

"Why not converse with him then?" Wraith asked the Weavile. "I imagine having an opportunity to talk with your father wou-"

"In case you didn't hear." Obsidian snapped out, "He's dead. There's sort of... well, I don't know, a big barrier in the way of talking to the dead." He sighed afterwards, "Or maybe he isn't. I don't know... I'm not sure if Guardia just told me that to make me feel better. She never produced a corpse, after all."

"In case you didn't realize, you are talking with a Dusknoir," Wraith replied with a nod. "As I said before, I did speak with a General who had been dead for over fifty years. Summoning a conversation with your departed father should not be the most challenging thing in the world to do. Some concentration and focus, as well as a brief description and perhaps a name will help, but it is not an impo-"

"But... that's only old legends." Obsidian stated. "What your kind do... that talking with the dead stuff. It's just old legends that ancient mon conjured up." He crossed his arms, "Look... I've accepted my father is dead, and I know how this trick goes. You're going to grab one of those boards with the letters on it, put your hands on some sort of triangle, and act like the 'spirit's'," He made quotations in the air with his claws, "are guiding your hand and spelling out a message. I've seen it plenty of times not only in Anatellia, but Valkaria too."

"If you do not believe it, then I will simply depart with a farewell," Wraith responded with a nod. "But if you want to see, then say so and I will show you the departe-"

"... Wait." Obsidian said with a sigh, "I've had a butt load of psychics try that trick on me. You're Gold Tribe. ... I'll give you a chance. One chance." He said as he held up a single claw, "If you're pulling the rug out from underneath me... well, I'll probably bash your face in as well. Just saying."

"I do not mean to be rude, but I am a ghost. And Gold Tribe," Wraith responded. "I'm not certain you'll find the task so easily accomplished," He explained, as he closed his eyes, and lifted his hands in front of him. "The name, species, departure of the deceased?"

Obsidian frowned, "What do you mean by departure of the deceased?"

"The location of his departure," Wraith explained. "Where did the departed last walk the earth as we know it? Where was his final place of life? Where did he draw his last breath? Where was he no longer considered among the mortals of the world? Where did he pass on from one plane of existence to the othe-"

"Okay, I get it." Obsidian stopped him, "Name was Leon. Species is of course Weavile. Departure... uh... best I could say is Karn. I have no idea where he died, and he's not buried." He gave a weak shrug, "I think it was near their capital or something. Maybe. It's been... I don't know, years since she told me. So I could be a bit off."

"Hmmm..." The Dusknoir was silent, for once, as he seemed to concentrate. There was an eerie period of silence in which the usually talkative Wraith had ceased doing so. Until he finally glanced at the Weavile. "Give me your arm, and speak to Leon the Weavile."

Obsidian stared warily at the Dusknoir, but held out his hand, "Um... okay." For a moment he was just awkwardly touching Wraith, "Um... so any-" His body tensed as he heard a voice.

"... Well, finally."

"... Wraith, did you say something?" He asked the Dusknoir. Still, the ghost was silent, and that was the one thing that was creeping Obsidian out the most. The scenery around him faded away as the Weavile looked about, "Um... Wraith?" He called out. "This is some ghost trick, right?"

"You know what I always said, never trust ghosts."

Obsidian turned about to see that there was another Weavile behind him. To any outside observers, it would be as if they were seeing an identical copy of Obsidian. Obsidian wasn't quite sure on what to say at the first as he stared on. "... Mother's name?" He asked.

"Felicia." The other Weavile answered.

"Number of coins on the desk?"

"You always kept five." The other Weavile casually looked down at his claws, "Well? Anything else you want to ask?"

Obsidian fell silent for a moment, "So... you're real. You're disappointed, aren't you?"

Leon frowned at that and lowered his hand, "You see... that's the problem. I knew someone else should have taken you in." He sighed, "Penance was never good with self images. He's made you just like him. Scared that if one single mon doesn't like him, then it's the end of the world!" He shook his head, "I'm not disappointed. More... looking to see more from you." He crossed his arms, "You can always do more, but I think you called me for another reason, didn't you?"

Obsidian looked away, "Not sure if it's quite respectful if I ask who gut you."

"And yet, you just asked." Leon tapped his chin, "So, ask a specific question."

Obsidian bit his lower lip, "... What happened in there? You had the Zoroarks guarding you and the others. Their illusions were superior. You should have been safe. Why weren't you?"

Leon sighed, "... They were illusion masters. Best I had ever seen, you know. But the Emperor has some sort of guy with him. Didn't cast out any attack, just pointed... and it was like he saw us." The Weavile threw his hands up, "No idea how really. He broke the illusion and we were captured."

"You marched into the palace?" Obsidian asked, confusion in his voice.

"No we didn't. We're not stupid." Leon sighed, "He was out in the wastelands. How were we supposed to know it was the bloody king? We just wanted to scoot around them, and they saw us. By the time we realized what was up, it was too late."

"... Why did he kill you all?"

"We tried reasoning." Leon put his hands behind his head, "That good old diplomacy that Penance pushed for words over actions, and we tried our best." He closed his eyes, "Just because we spoke, they killed us. One by one. Just a slice and I was no more."

Obsidian frowned at that, "So... the emperor of Karn... the most powerful mon in the whole world... killed you." He rubbed at his forehead, "There's no way I can go up against him!"

"You misunderstand." Leon stated, "It was a grand general. His name is Dorrian and... I think he's still alive. At least, I haven't seen him pop up in the afterlife. As to where he is now... I have no clue. He could be in Karn still, or he could be somewhere else. I am pretty sure he's still in Karn though. But where... I'm not sure. He could be in any of the cities, so if you go after him you should check around"

Obsidian thought on that, "What does he look like, then? What is he capable of?"

"He's a Tropius. Really big guy. Just... don't get under him anytime soon." Leon frowned, "And he's very capable of anything a typical Karn mon can do. Probably a thousand times worse, to be honest. His looks deceive, so be careful when engaging him. He has a lazy eye, and he's way larger than a regular Tropius. So, if you happen to see a group of Tropius, the biggest guy out of them all is no doubt Dorrian. Dark green too, so it should be a clear indicator."

"And of the one who saw you?" Obsidian asked. "Dorrian did the deed... but that deed wouldn't have been possible if you hadn't been caught. This revenge has to be two fold."

"A Mightyena. That's all I know. They really didn't say his name while I was being slashed. Either that, or I was too busy reacting to the pain being inflicted on me to notice if they were saying his name. Looked pretty standard too."

Obsidian thought for a bit longer, "Just one last thing... where is your body? After all of this, you need to be buried."

Leon let out a weary sigh, "You do realize that if there is a body left, they just won't step aside and let you take it, right?"

"If you don't tell me where it is, then I'll just search every building then."

Leon let out a louder groan, "Sheesh, you're stubborn like the duck is. Look, there is no body left. Guardia probably left that detail out just to not burden you with horrific images of my corpse rotting on some street somewhere."

Obsidian grit his teeth, "That... b***h."

"Hey." Leon held his hand up, "Do you honestly think a one year old you would even be able to comprehend that information? She was doing you a favor in my book."

Obsidian ground his teeth, "So, you can't even have a burial then?"

Leon shrugged, "I mean, I'm over it. I'm dead, and nothing's changing it. Honestly, I would tell you not to go, but you're dead set on it. It's like shouting at a brick wall." he frowned, "Now that I think about it.. you're WAY too much like him. If you keep it up, you'll end up the same as him. Lonely, depressed, prone to violent mood swings, and probably talking gibberish to yourself and everyone around you."

Obsidian glared at his father, "Don't you DARE compare me to him."

Leon sighed, "Still sore?"

"Of course I'm sore!" Obsidian spat out.

"Look..." Leon stated, "Penance always has a plan. Don't count him out yet."

Obsidian turned away, "Just.. let's end this conversation here then. I know what I have to do, and that's all I came to you for."

The image faded, and Obsidian was once more in front of the Dusknoir Gold Tribe member. "Did you get the answers that you sought for? I am judging by your expression that perhaps it is a combination of yes and no? I personally cannot see what goes on when this happens if it it not me who is doing the actu-"

"I did." He muttered as he made his way back toward the fort, "I have a Zangoose to chat with. See ya."

 

[Megaman765]

Snype and Guardia- Trust issues

Snype was writing yet another letter... ironically in the same spot as last time. This time the letters he was writing seemed to be a lot more sizable... he had a lot of information to pass on to his thieves. On top of that, he had to request a lot of cash if he was going to pay off this mercenary. He never imagined all of this would take place in Antellia."Geez... I hope they can at the very least send the money soon... everyone has to start acting quick..." Snype muttered as Able sat there perched on a rock. She wasn't rushing him this time. She seemed to be informed of the situation beforehand and was taking it very seriously.

"Snype you think the thieves will be alright? Is Darkrai really going to make a push through the thieves' forest?" Able asked. Snype stayed silent and shook his head as he continued writing. He was being very vague.

"Do you always pick this corner to write in?" The familiar voice of Guardia asked from behind Snype.

Snype jumped in surprise once he heard Guardia's voice behind him. "A-ah! W-why do you always choose this spot to creep up on me? Kehe" Snype said. A bit of an odd thing for him of all mon to say out of the blue. "S-sorry just a little jumpy. Writing a lot of stuff to the thieves on top of getting the cash to pay James. I know he's going to be demanding pay sooner or later."

"Probably sooner," Guardia replied as she leaped onto a lowered branch of a tree to rest on. "What sort of stuff are you writing about?" She asked curiously.

"Requesting a large sum of cash mostly... and informing the thieves of what's going on. More specifically some of the stuff we learned while in Anatellia. It'd be good to warn them just in case anything happens related to it." Snype explained.

"Yeah, that's a good idea," Guardia agreed with a nod of her head. "... How are they holding up over there?" She asked, somewhat hesitantly. She partially feared all news that came out of Valkaria these days.

Snype rubbed his head. "Well... that's what I'm hoping to find out when I send this letter. I'm sending them alot of information their way and all..." Snype said. He still had a second letter to write on top of that but he seemed to have had that handled beforehand. Able was hanging onto it.

"What about the other one?" Guardia asked as she pointed to the other letter Able was holding. "Seems weird to send two separate letters to the thieves when you can write it all down in one. Is that one going somewhere else?"

Snype rubbed his head. "Erm... sorta kinda. I can only fit so much on a piece of paper ya know? Keheheh..." Snype said with a bit of a bashful grin.

Guardia tilted her head. "That doesn't make sense. Why not put two papers in a single letter then?"

Snype sat there a bit silently for a moment. "Well uh... tsk I guess ya got a point. I did say I was gonna be honest with ya after all right?" Snype said with a laugh. "Promise me you won't get all mad or anything when I tell ya this alrighty?"

Guardia cocked an eyebrow suspiciously and leaned forward along the tree branch. "I can't promise that, but I'll try to be... understanding."

Snype nodded. "Right. Was gonna tell you about this either way. I promised earlier after all. Well... the second letter? Its going up to Tollen. One way or another anyways." Snype explained

"Tollen?" Guardia repeated curiously. "Why would you be sending it up to To-" She suddenly stopped herself as her brows furrowed. "Of course, the Brotherhood! You took over it, didn't you?!"

Snype gave a thumbs up. "You got it! Kehe! Heck they requested me to help keep it going! It isn't like the old brotherhood but they're just doing your standard everyday thievery and crime nowadays." Snype explained. "Honestly its a huge upgrade for the thieves! Having access to resources up there as well as full on contact thanks to the Ninjask network. We'll be informed the second something goes wrong. It'll be especially important now that we know the whole business on cresselia. I figure the guys up there could keep a closer eye on the Queen. Be little guardians!" Obviously Snype had more in mind than that but he'd worry about the endgame later.

"... Yeah, guess," Guardia replied with a frown. "Arceus damn it," She cursed under her breath.

Snype frowned back at Guardia. "...You're mad aren't ya? Ke-...erm... yeah." Snype looked away and paused a moment, writing a bit more into his letter in the process. "Guardia I'm not just doing this for the thieves, I'm doing this in our best interest as well."

"Right now you are but..." She sighed and shook her head. "You just don't get it, do you? When this war is over, do you think I'm just going to let you do as you please? I have a code to live by. And you're breaking it. I'm going to have to bring you down. Don't you get that?!" She screamed angrily.

Snype leaned back a bit when Guardia started to yell at him... he expected her to be upset but this was more then he expected. He normally would have made some smart comment toward Guardia but he wanted to keep things serious in front of her. Snype glanced to the side and didn't say anything. He wasn't sure how to say it in front of her, but he had enjoyed being on good terms with Guardia this whole trip. He wondered if the same thing was on her mind.

"...That's how the Thieves and Gold Tribe have always been... I mean..." Snype went silent again. "...honestly you may not even have to worry. If I keep James around then I may end up going entirely broke either way when this war ends. Then guess I'd be the King of a whole lot of nothing eh? So hey you won't have to worry about me by then right? Kehe." Snype stated.

"I do have to worry," Guardia retorted with a huff. "Because you'll go and try to build yourself up again, won't you? And guess who's going to have to take you down?"

Snype gave off a concerned look to Guardia. "You're really worried about us being enemies again huh?" Snype said.

"No one wants to have to fight someone they know," Guardia muttered. "And know well. We've known each other like forever, Snype."

Snype looked down at his feet and the letter he had completely paused writing. "...I know Guardia but what am I supposed to do? I've formed a foundation at this point and gave lives to alot of mon who needed some kind of home. Its not the most credible thing in the world sure, but it's something. You think you can provide for almost a whole army's worth of thieves?" Snype stated back to her.

"...honestly I kinda enjoy our tussles together but I guess I'm looking at it from a more selfish perspective. Keh." Snype said with a small grin. "...Keh... I won't lie Guardia. I actually do enjoy sitting down and just talking with ya like this. How bout you?" Snype asked. "And nothing smart either. I've been genuine with you so far. Kehe."

"I don't enjoy talking when these kinds of subject come up," Guardia replied back, clearly still upset about the situation. "Especially since you keep deflecting on this. I can definitely come up with a few ways to provide for the thieves and set them up with places. It's not like we don't have space. And before the war started, we did consider building up a few new, smaller towns toward the south closer to the seas. Yeah, it's definitely doable."

"Tsk. Sure. I'm sure you'll have an easy time finding a place for someone like Charlie right?" Snype shot back. "The folks who joined the thieves aren't your average everyday citizens. Each of them has a complex story to tell. The forest is a safe haven for those who got shunned by society. I don't think they'll be so willing to just head home. Where will they go? Join the Gold Tribe?" Snype said, putting emphasis at the end of his sentence.

"I know just where to put Charlie," She retorted almost immediately. "In jail, where that slimy piece of crap belongs. He's a lawbreaker. The rest of the thieves who aren't, can easily rejoin society. No, they don't have to join the Gold Tribe. They probably can't. But they can live their lives in peace and freedom as normal citizens while I'm around. Yeah, maybe society shunned them once, but I won't. And those that follow me won't. Thieves and Gold Tribe have been at each other's throats for years. Why not just stop it?"

"You'll let criminals back into civilization and just assume everything is going to be alright? You'd be digging a hole for yourself Guardia. It'd be more trouble then you could handle... also..."

Snype stood up and looked up at Guardia. "You won't shun them huh?" Snype replied back. "Guardia, answer a question for me. When you recruit new members into the Gold Tribe... what do you think happens to the trainees you decline?"

Guardia glanced back at Snype and tilted her head. "The decline members? I guess... they go on with their lives. Some join the Alpha Alliances, some rejoin society. Others I kinda lose track of."

Snype pinched between his eyes. "You really don't know do you? Did you ever consider looking at that scenario from their perspective? Training for years to join the Gold Tribe, only to be told that they weren't good enough and to just go home? Why... if it were me I would be practically traumatized! I wasted a good 5 years to only be told no! Maybe I'd go find someone that would respect my talents..." Snype said.

"You're not saying..." Guardia's voice trailed off as she furrowed her brows at Snype. "They've been coming to you?" She asked with a hint of anger and disbelief.

"Of course they have! Of course that's after I explain everything to them... I'm not going to do something stupid like train gold tribe trainer mon into criminals. Despite being part of the job on a daily basis. None of them would join the thieves just because they wanted to be criminals like a majority of our thieves. I'm more organized than that." Snype stated.

Guardia clenched her fists, and her jaw, but decided against responding to that beyond a sigh. She then spoke again. "I stand by my decisions. They weren't right for the tribe, so I didn't accept them."

"Fair enough, but you could tell them that before enrolling into a whole academy. I can see so many things wrong with this system, but at the same time, it helped the thieves get to where it was today." Snype said with a sigh. "You'd be surprised how many capable folks I've gotten from you alone. Like... really REALLY talented and good mon. If it weren't for their help I'd have never expanded as far as I did." He explained. Able just sat there silently watching the two go at it.

"I did tell them that," Guardia replied even more annoyed. "Telling them exactly that was the very first thing we say when they get into an academy," She explained. "Look to your right, look to your left, and look within yourself. Two of you will not make it through," She stated. "And we'd be very clear about it! Being in the Gold Tribe isn't for everyone. It's not a club. It's a responsibility. And some 'mon simply aren't meant to handle it."

Snype shook his head. "Gah... I realize how far from the point I've been straying." Snype stated before sitting back down. "...You wanna know why I brought the thieves back and made it as big as it became? If I really just wanted to do petty crime the rest of my life I'd have just kept it at Gold City." Snype began. "But I have another question for you. I just want to be totally sure. Those Mega Stones... when we're all said and done, what do you plan to do with them?"

Guardia raised an eyebrow to the first part of Snype's statement. She hadn't necessarily considered an ulterior motive to his expansion, and now she was curious. But she proceeded to answer the second question. "The Mega Stones? I'm not sure... I haven't had time to think it over. They're pretty powerful tools, after all. But the Gold Tribe only has one, while you have the other so I don't know if I'm in a position to really say."

"Guardia don't try to brush around the subject. You're holding a very powerful tool there. Something that could potentially put you on par with legendaries. What are you going to do with it when we're done?" Snype held out his own Mega Stone. "And before you ask, what I do with mine depends on your choices Guardia."

"Like I said!" Guardia exclaimed. "I. Don't. Know," She repeated. "I haven't thought about it. But now that I think about it, they're way too powerful to keep around. This kind of power isn't intended for us. But I don't plan to hide it away like we did with the Gold and Silver Crystals. We all know how that turned out. So right now, I'm just looking for answers."

Snype sighed in relief. "...well I'm glad Guardia." Snype said as he turned around. "But honestly, who's to say more mon won't find these stones? You're smart enough to not abuse its power and use it to totally rule the world... but any other mon may have different plans, if they can control it." Snype stated. "This is another reason I expanded the thieves so far out and made our numbers so big. As a failsafe incase some kind of disaster happens. Say if the gold tribe decided they wanted to stray from their values..." Snype paused for a moment. "...And I've seen that happen on a few occasions." Snype said.

"Oh, so that's what you're doing," Guardia muttered in surprise. "I'm actually impressed. That's... that's not a bad thing. You're at least trying to keep things right... but I have a question for you," She stated as she looked directly into the Sableye's eyes. "I keep the Gold Tribe in check. That's one of the reasons that there's so many turned away. But what about your people? Can you say for certainty that you trust every single one of them? What if it's not mine that stray away from their values, as you said, but yours? Then what?"

Snype stared at Guardia straight into her eyes. "...I've considered that possibility Guardia." Snype said with a frown. "Unfortunately I don't think that's something I can easily avoid. The gold tribe seems to capture most of those mon anyways. Kehe..." Snype looked away again. "I honestly spend so much time making sure you all don't go overboard that I don't think enough about my own group... I've had plenty of problems arise on the way of course but they've been dealt with all the same... besides, I do have methods to avoid such problems." Snype stated but didn't go into much further detail.

"Uh-huh," Guardia said as she crossed her arms. "You see how that could worry someone like me? If you're depending on me to take care of your messes, what does that say about what kind of organization you're running? You may have some right things going on, but there's plenty of other things I know you're up to."

"Yeah speak for yourself Guardia." Snype said, crossing his arms. "I'm not depending on you. As I said, I'm already prepared for traitors. Each has been smoothly dealt with one way or another..." Snype said, just kicking at the dirt now. "What do ya plan to do the next time something else falls down on the Gold Tribe? Auron and the Silver Tribe was one fault, and don't even get me started with Penance. What'll happen the next time somebody decides to stay from the Gold Tribes Values? Will you be prepared to deal with it?" Snype asked her.

"Hanso was the one who requested me to even do this thing in the first place. I had to agree with him full on after what I went through."

"Hanso... he would do something like that..." Guardia closed her eyes for a moment and smirked. "Yeah, I'll be prepared. Because Auron was the fault of Darkrai, and bad planning. And Penance... well, I'll be ready. But I guess I could understand for back-ups. That goes double for your thieves too, though."

Snype stared Guardia down. "How about you? Will you be prepared for yourself?" Snype stated. "All it takes is one bad day Guardia... that was all it took for me to go over the edge that day." Snype held his arm in a bit of an insecure fashion. "I just don't want to see anything like that happen to you..."

"It won't," Guardia replied firmly. "I've lived through enough to know that now. I've seen what the Gold Tribe had become, what it had been. I contributed to that. But when I lost my friend thirty years ago, I vowed to live up to his sacrifice. And I will."

Snype just stared silently. He didn't look entirely convinced... "...For your sake I hope you keep that vow Guardia." Snype stated before continuing to write his letter. He paused a moment and looked over to Guardia again. "I don't want to think what I'm doing is wrong Guardia... but...guess that goes to show how selfish I can be eh? Keheh...still..." Snype said with a grin. "I'll have to ask again I spose. Does it make me a bad person? Going for any means possible to look out for everyone?"

Guardia kept her expression stonewalled. She offered Snype a shrug. "Are you sure that's what you're really doing? Or is it just a cover-up for you to expand your thieves to do whatever you want? Because at this point I'm not entirely sure."

Snype continued to stare silently. "...I'm not covering up my expansion. You already know about it so what's the point? I promised I'd start being more honest with you Guardia and I did just that. My opinions, plots, and everything. Or is that not good enough?" Snype shot back. "Do I need to give you an overview? Alright! Yeah! My thieves are still expanding! They have a presence in Beatruce which may I remind you is still infected with that plague. I have them stationed there to assist with containing it so it doesn't spread further. The thieves in Tollen are there to watch out there! At first it was just insurance, but now its a means of extra funding for this blasted agent and to make sure Cresselia doesn't get swooped right under our noses! Of course when Darkrai's gone, things will probably go back to normal! I dunno! Maybe I'll end up going broke! Hell if we're lucky I might just get killed on the way there and save everyone the trouble!" Snype started to shout louder as he started to crumple up the letter in his hand.

"But you know what? I guess expanding the thieves should be my biggest worry! Yeah! No no you're absolutely right! That's me the king of thieves! All that other stuff? Pfft! Nah I don't need to worry about some lunatic in our group leaving off and backstabbing us! Or that @#$&ing edgy Medicham always thinking about breaking my neck every time I so much as glance as him! I wonder how many of my own thieves I lost helping you gold tribes actually COMMUNICATE with each other in that warzone of a city? Hah! Hell I haven't heard from Beatruce! Maybe they all got infected by that plague and dropped on the floor! We even have three agents in our own fort! Ever thought that Darkrai MAY POSSIBLY have some means of listening in through them?!" Snype shouted as he clenched his fists. He seemed to be shaking a bit.

"And now there's this tenth guardian business! I can only imagine what everyones thinking of that situation! Bet someones thinking "Maybe we should find that thing instead of cresselia! I feel like slaying a god! I got this fancy mega stone what'll stop me besides other Mega Stones? I can walk with legendaries with a knife to their throats and rule the world myself!" It drives me crazy! Argh!" Snype said as he threw a shadow ball toward a tree in front of him.

"Mmm but nah! None of that's very important huh? Thief work first! Your #$%king kidding me right?! Do you really think I'm like that STUPID?" Snype ripped up the letter he was writing up to shreds as he spoke. He stood silently and looked down at the different scraps. He didn't even want to hear it. The Sableye just glared at Guardia and turned around to just stomp away.

Able just watched the entire scene silently and looked over to Guardia. "...this is the second time I've seen him get this angry." She commented.

Guardia just stared at the path Snype stormed off, dumbfounded. "... hell, I didn't even know he could get that angry..." She muttered. "I didn't... I mean... some of that stuff, I guess I got where he was coming from, but he lost me at some points..." The Zangoose debated on what to do next, before deciding it was probably better to just let him be for now.

"Good choice." Able replied back. "He holds alot of the pressure and frustration he gets in that giant head of his. He keeps his cool very easily but once he explodes... well, there you go." Able explained. "Sad thing is this wasn't nearly as bad as the first time."

"When was the first time?" Guardia asked curiously.

"When he was starting out as the King of Thieves." She simply replied.

"Huh... I never knew he could get like that," Guardia commented. "He's always been trying to keep everyone else smiling and cheery that we never look often at him about those things... I'll try talking to him about it later maybe."

"I'm sure he'd like that." Able stated as she started to fly into the air, holding onto the important letter at least. "He really does enjoy talking to you whenever he has the chance. He told me you two were like childhood friends or something right?"

"Something like that," Guardia replied as she continued to watch the path upon which Snype left. "We knew each other back then... once. I'm not sure if we still do anymore," She commented as she began to walk away in the opposite direction.

"...Maybe that's why." Able commented. "Guess he just misses you." Abel said, sneaking in a small chuckle before she zipped toward the thieves forest.

 

[Kikpanther]

S E C B O Y S - Annabelle Serta and Hanso Sharp-Eye

Anatellia had introduced Anna and the gang to a new slew of events. The Gamblers plans, well, both his plans, then the fight with Roxanna, finding the books, finding the Mega Stones, and... so many other things. There was a lot to say! And a lot to report as well! It had been so long and Anna cursed herself for taking so much time to do this.

Annabelle rushed her little legs down to the Network Point in Anatellia and, after a few pleases and thank yous to the psychics there, made a connection back to Gold City.

It had taken a while for the Psychics to bring anyone up on the screen. Apparently, a lot was going on on the other end of the Network Point, so it was difficult to communicate with anyone there. Eventually, after a bit of a wait, the familiar image of Hanso Sharp-Eye transmitted in front of Anna and projected to the Mareep. He looked worn and exhausted as if he had not slept in days. But he tried to maintain a certain level-headedness in front of his employee.

"Anna, good to see you still alright," He greeted. "I sure hope you could explain some things, because a lot has been happening here that I don't fully understand."

Anna gasped at the sight of Hanso. Things had been rough when they left, but he still stood strong then. Now she couldn't tell if he was at his limit or worse! Was he injured? How much had he been fighting? He looked like he needed to stop. Did he know if he could even hold out much longer? Anna began to imagine scenarios where she called and he didn't answer at all. Then what? She already looked like she could start shaking.

"Hanso! Are you alright? What things have been happening? I can explain when you-- Are you injured?" Anna quickly delved into rattling off questions about his well-being. She hadn't rattled like this since the last time she talked to him. But... Really.. Was he okay!?

"Not injured as much as tired..." The old Gallade muttered. "Something happened in the past few days here. All the Seekers, they just up and left, and then we started hearing about Penance joining Darkrai? After that, Darkrai's armies started to siege Gold City in force. This was our third night of consecutive fighting. What happened?"

Anna let out a troubled sigh from Hanso's report. "A lot has gone on since our mission began. What you've heard is true. Penance has left us to join Darkrai's forces and appointed Obsidian in his stead. With Penance left a lot of his Seekers and with the tactics we've seen Darkrai used to get more members of his army I'm not surprised there is a wave of new enemies coming towards you. Penance was a valuable member of our team before he left and if Darkrai is putting more pressure on Gold City it may be because he's learned of our mission to find Cresselia from Penance." Why he had done any of it Anna could not understand. She hadn't been apart of it all and maybe if she had been she would know, but... His actions were causing a problem. A big one. "If Darkrai knows what we're doing I imagine he wants to take you all out as quickly as possible now."

"... Damn," Hanso muttered. "This is looking like thirty years ago all over again..." He shook his head in disappointment. "You're probably right. This isn't a good thing. I get the feeling from here on out, things are going to get a lot harder for your group. Not to mention for us back here. What else has happened? Any progress on Cresselia?"

"Yes," Anna answered with a nod, "there has been. Both good and bad." And there was a lot to say. Without taking the moment to pause Anna detailed what the group has been going through since arriving in Anatellia. There were the Dark Moons and the Earth Dwellers. The Gambler and then finally the Mega Stones and the information they had found on them. She even detailed what they knew about they yet unvisited countries to warn Hanso of any potential developments in their battle, but it was all she could give for now. "With what I've learned these Mega Stones hold tremendous and a Pokemon with the right training can harness them. Right now members of the Gold Tribe are even looking into possibly using them. It's promising for the coming battles, but afterwards there are concerns about their use. Luckily we are looking for a way to destroy them to use against Darkrai, but I see no reason not to store the a information for other purposes as well. We suspect a stone made by legendaries can be destroyed by one. It isn't easy saying we must go and find a legendary, but after the discovery of Victini I believe it is possible."

"... I see," Hanso nodded in response. "Definitely look into those stones more, and keep me posted on who is getting them... I'm not liking the power they can give out. It's not the safest thing in the world for 'mon to have it."

Anna shook her head. "No, it isn't. After the incident with the bomb, I don't want to see what it could do with an active 'mon using it." The results could be devastating. And if they appeared in Gold City? Anna shuddered at the though. "I will definitely be keeping my ears open for any signs that they can be controlled or shut down." It was her new mission. She knew Cal was working hard with the Mega Stones. He wouldn't know how to turn them off, but he could definitely help her with her understanding of the orbs. "Is there anything else I can assist you with Hanso?" Send resources? Anything?

"You can continue to do the thing your group has been doing this entire time," Hanso replied. "Get us fighters. Armies, forces, mercenaries, healers, anything that will help. But most of all, get us Cresselia."

 

[SV]

Snype, Cal, Raz, and James - The Meaning of Mega

Snype moved out quite a distance away from the fort after completely blowing up on Guardia. He finally was about to vent out everything frustrating him about this entire trip but ended up doing it at the wrong time. Snype was worried of what Guardia was feeling about all that. "Gah... dammit why'd I have to go an explode on her? She didn't deserve all that." Snype said to himself as he sat down against the nearest tree he could find. "Dammit..."

"Hey," James greeted casually from behind the Sableye suddenly.

Snype turned back to James and just stared at him. "...If you're looking for your pay then it's already on its way. Transferring a large sum of money from my cache takes a bit of time. I already have Able on it as we speak. Give it a few minutes and it'll be here." Snype explained.

"Good," James nodded as he crossed his arms and continued to stare at the Sableye. "I'll just wait here with you until it arrives."

"I was gonna suggest that anyways. I intend to go through with the deal and all James." Snype said to him. "Kehe, guess you have a lot of experience with folks who don't go through with this kinda thing if you came all the way out here to find me eh?"

"I do," James replied plainly, still with his arms crossed.

Snype just glanced to the side and back to James. Clearly a mon of few words. "Tsk. Well glad one of us is using their brain here..." Snype said before shaking his head. "Ugh... sorry. Frustrated. Doubt you'd really care, already exploded on Guardia earlier and all." Snype said with a sigh as he decided to pull out his Mega Stone and look down at it. Part of him was hoping he could actually make it work this time.

"It won't work," James stated casually as he looked at Snype's Mega Stone.

Snype perked up and looked up at James. "Huh? I literally just spat out my whole life story out back there. What else do I have to do to at least make this thing spark?" Snype said as he looked down once more.

"Not spit out your whole back story," James replied casually.

Snype raised a brow at James. "Wha...what are you on about?" Snype said, his hand shaking a little.

"I heard you shouting from where I was laying, which wasn't that close," James explained. "If you think something is holding you back that you're hiding, fine, but sacrificing secrets for emotional stability basically means you've gone no where."

Snype gritted his teeth. "...d...dammit... course I forgot about that." Snype shook his head and took a deep breath. "I just lost it, if I didn't break it all out sooner or later I'd probably have ended up worse. Tsk... I'm bound to get over it...I just need to relax..." Snype's hand was still shaking. He still had quite a few things in his head.

"So no point staring at it now to expect it to work," The Blaziken stated.

"I know. It's me hoping in desperation. Gah." Snype put the stone back into his bag. He couldn't calm down that easily. It was going to take the Sableye some time to recover from that mess. "I just want to figure out this thing before someone else come along and pulls one on us. If the enemy Mega Evolves on us then we're as good as boned unless Cal can manage."

"They likely won't," James replied with a small shake of his head.

"Well yeah I guess you'd know that if you worked with them." Snype shot back. "But I guess you are right. If Darkrai wanted us dead he'd probably come and get us by now. I've said that to everybody several times." Snype shook his head again. "How long did it take to figure out your own Mega Stone anyways?"

"Not long," James responded with another short reply.

"Psh. Well aren't you special." Snype said with a loud huff. Further going to show he had a ways to go. Soon enough that ever familiar buzzing sound was heard not too far off. Able and a few other Ninjask would arrive carrying the sum of money that James would need, along with a few extra on top of that to last a couple weeks at the most. He figured their next trip would be a long one.

"B...boss... are you sure about giving this one mon so much cash? What's he need this for anyways?" One of the Ninjask asked.

"Just trust me on this. He's capable enough." Snype said to the Ninjask as they placed the gold down. He was of course curious himself but they did have a deal.

James grabbed hold of the large sack of gold. He lifted it up slight with one hand, as if he were weighing it. Seemingly satisfied with what was inside, the Blaziken carried it to the edge of the river, and suddenly tossed it inside. The sack swiftly began sinking to the bottom of the lake. "Good."

Snype raised his brows when he watched the Blaziken dump the giant sack of cash into the lake. "Wha- uh... James? I'm sure there's better ways to store cash..." Snype said, feeling a bit concerned now.

"I'm sure there is," James replied as he stretched his back and collapsed on the soft green grass by the river and began to relax. "But I'll leave it as is."

Snype rubbed his head. "U-um... whatever ya say..." Snype said as he sat down in the grass as well, collapsing in a similar fashion and just taking a deep breath. James lay silently beside Snype silently for a while. He closed his eye, the one visible, and propped his arms behind his head as he seemed to try to relax. The Sableye just laid down and gave off a sigh, trying to help himself relax a bit from the scene he caused earlier. The Blaziken beside him seemed to pick up on this as his nose crunched one or twice. Suddenly, he burst up from his rested position.

"Alright, fine, fine!" The Blaziken roared as he stood up and reached into his bag. He pulled out his own Mega Stone. "Pay attention," He ordered.

"Wha-" Snype said in shock. He would have been modest about it but he was genuinely interested in seeing Mega evolution with his own two eyes. Hell it may help him pull it off. "...Keh, guess I should have been more direct with that one," Snype said as he got right up and paid attention to the Blaziken.

"Minion!" A familiar voice called from above. Not long afterwards, the small form of Razathiel the Dreadmage dropped from the sky and landed not far from the two 'mon in a small cloud of dust. "Oh-! And James, apparently," The wizard continued with a slight grimace. "Well, erm- what's happening here?"

Snype fell back in surprise once the Ralts literally dropped from the sky! "R-Raz! You might wanna stand over here for a minute!" Snype said, looking back at James, expecting him to continue. James meanwhile had his Mega Stone out and held it in one hand. He closed his eyes and breathed in steadily but deeply. The Mega Stone shined brightly in between his palm. He lifted the orb up and extended his arm toward the sky above.

"One more tomorrow," The Blaziken muttered. He then suddenly and violently thrust the Mega Stone toward the ground. The impact created an enormous force which pushed everything within ten meters of the Blaziken away. The ground where he impacted the stone cracked and collapsed, as an enormous crater began to form underneath him. The grass around the area evaporated from the energy released, and rocks flew in all directions from the point of impact.

Then the stone glowed a bright white color. This was matched by the same glow around the Blaziken. As his transformation began in the pure white aura, rocks and dust continued to spiral around from the force of the transformation. Slowly, the Blaziken's appearance began to form more clearly from within the white light. Black markings began to appear on his upper legs and his chest. The hair-like feathers on his head took on a more wing-like appearance, and fire extended longer around his wrists. With the transformation complete, the newly-evolved Blaziken opened his one visible eye as the white light completely died down around his body to reveal the Mega Blaziken.

"Neat," Said Raz.

Snype meanwhile was pelted with a few rocks during the transformation and had to hide within his Shadow Sneak form. As soon as things died out, Snype emerged from the shadow and took a good look at the Blaziken. "I know they made you powerful but..." Snype seemed pretty shocked. This would be terrible in the wrong hands. "You made it look so easy!"

"It's anything but easy," James replied with a voice more vigorous and animated than it had been any other time before. "I just had the benefit of good guidance," He explained. Rocks still crumbled around him at his mere presence, and as he took one step forward, blades of grass burned to crisps. "It's not just brute force or power. It's a synthesis. It's superior insight, crisp judgment. It's elevated cunning, superior physical and mental capability beyond anything you can imagine!" James clenched his fists, which caused the flames along his wrist to rise and spread across the area, burning everything it made even the slightest contact with. "In this form, I'm not just on par with a legendary Pokémon," He stated as he looked up at Raz and Snype. "I am a legendary."

"Synthesis? That sounds disappointing," Razathiel commented, absent-mindedly turning his Mega Stone around in the palm of his hand. "I wonder what kind of work-around could exist, seeing as the traditional route doesn't appear to be so preferable..."

Snype reached down into his bag to pull his own Mega Stone, just observing the Mega Blaziken now. "I see... " Snype simply stated. "Even if there were some work around... I still want to learn how to use this stone properly and reach that kind of level... seeing it in action here and now is just motivating me to try harder at it." Snype said as he clenched on his stone, focusing intently on it. "I could only imagine someone like Gabe having this sort of Power..."

"Gabriel already does," James responded as he stepped forward again, with energy slowly wrapping around the area again. Flames burned below his feet. "His stone turns him into Darkrai, after all," He stated. The Blaziken closed his eyes, and slowly, the flames began to die from around his wrists. The effects of the transformation had slowly begun to wear off, and his body and Mega Stone slowly de-evolved back into his normal Blaziken form. He had reverted, but the damage around him still remained.

The Blaziken was seen now panting quite heavily. "Don't try... so hard to... ach-" James suddenly coughed, as a large amount of blood flowed from his mouth. He spit out any that remained around him, and then tried to compose himself.

"James!" Snype ran up to him, mostly to check up on him. Snype had totally forgotten of Gabe's own Mega Stone. Considering how similar it was to the others at least... These things would be a means to put them on par with Darkrai one way or another! "Relax..." Snype simply said. He now had a full on example of the negative side effects of using the stone. If this was what happened after a few seconds, he wondered what a longer duration of time would do to someone. James held his hand up to tell Snype to back away.

"No... no, back," James stated weakly. "You should see this," He explained. "This is what you have to look forward to, as a future Mega-Evolver," He coughed up more blood, and then snorted at Snype and Raz. "The both of you, maybe. The tolls of Mega Evolution are huge. Doing it once, your... very first," He coughed again. "... time, can cause extreme inner damage to your body. Most normal Pokémon would die the first time around. For the few... strong... others... they can go a second time. But it takes a toll on your life... every other time after kills you..."

"Yes, yes, I'm sure it's very painful," Raz said dismissively with a roll of his eyes. He casually popped the mega stone onto the tip of his staff and balanced it there, bringing it close to his right eye. "The problem is synthesis and the nature of extracting the ever-so-helpfully demonstrated power in the first place."

Snype gulped. "S...so... how many times have you transformed then? Crap I didn't mean to make you waste a usage like that!" Snype said.

"You didn't force me to do anything I didn't want to do myself," James muttered, as he smirked. "This is my..." He looked up at the sky and sighed deeply. "How many times now? This is the fourteenth."

"Go figure," Raz murmured, tapping his Mega Stone tentatively.

"Wha-..." Snype froze. "H...how? Was it Gabe or was that guidance really that powerful...?" Snype was clearly envious.

"Gabriel helped," James replied. "Or rather... he taught me one major thing: how to continue to survive it. Something I won't teach to you."

Snype crossed his arms. "Tsk. Even when I'm paying ya you won't even share that eh? Kehe" Snype said with a small laugh. "You are one tough guy to work with. Kehe" He joked, trying to be playful and casual with him.

Off to the side of the riverbank the Gold Tribe's second had been watching silently for some time, and only just now finished staring in awe, deciding instead to grimace at his own Mega Stone in his hand. "So, that's the kind of price we pay huh?...."

"It is," James answered to the Dragonite to the side, before he turned to Snype. "Trust me, you don't want me to teach you it. Gabriel knew exactly what he was doing when I asked and he answered. There's not a single 'mon alive that can Mega Evolve that many times without consequence. And I'm no exception. You want help with Mega Evolving? I can help you start the process, for a price, to get a couple good evolutions out without much consequence. But you don't want what I have."

Another offer... Snype wasn't too keen on spending more money on him... "Is this price going to be as massive as the current one? Kehe" Snype asked.

"No, not too bad, I'd say, for it's price. About a thousand gold a lesson," He replied, as he wiped away the blood from his mouth. He seemed to slowly begin recovering from the effects of the Mega Stone, but he still seemed awfully pale and weak.

"Just tell me this James." Cal said quietly, closing in on the pair. "Can it be done, for very small bursts of time fairly harmlessly? If you don't attack anything or fight, and don't stay in it very long, is it possible to do without ticking down that invisible counter, and get some practice in?"

James nodded. "You can go into a sorta dormant form," He explained. "Not as flashy as the one I just showed, but it'll help you get used to it. That's something I can help show you how to do, too."

Callimer clenched his fist around his Mega Stone and nodded. "I think that sounds good, but I can't afford to pay much for it, not after paying for that information when we were first deciding whether to hire you or not."

"Well... I'll at least consider it. I won't lie, I'd like to have some control over my Mega Stone before I go through that kind of process..." Snype said.

James shrugged. "If you don't have the money, then tough luck. That's what the lessons cost, since it's my own time and a lot more energy to teach. Gabriel's way is faster, but I won't teach you that, as I said before."

"Right... well at this rate, one thousand is nothing. Why the hell not?" Snype said with a grin.

"What about our deal James?" Cal inquired. "You never answered me after the last match, so about now I'm either expecting an answer or a heavy discount on that lesson."

"Hmph," James crossed his arms. "Well let me answer that by asking you a question first. To the three of you. Why do you want to Mega Evolve in the first place?"

"Well... I want a fighting chance against Darkrai or even other Mega Stone users. If I have a chance to protect someone then I'd like to have a trump card like this that I can control." Snype stated.

Cal turned away to calm himself for a moment, focus on giving a real answer, even the question itself made him angry when he thought of all the reasons. "Because...whatever morals Darkrai and his loyal followers have, even if there's some truth to them, don't matter in the slightest. All I need to know is that he and his ilk have been trying to topple the rest of us since long before I was born, and that even now they're willing to break into my home and slaughter those I care about just to make their wishes a reality. So I'm going to fight them with every fiber of my being, and if I ever end up face to face with Gabriel again, I won't be helpless against him. I will walk as he does, if only for a short while, and I. Will. Stop him."

He knew he'd run his mouth a lot more than necessary, but he couldn't help really stating his determination.

"Because it looks neat," Raz answered dismissively.

"Right," James glanced at the three as he continued to cross his arms. "And if you win, if you beat Darkrai, but the one person you care about the most dies in the process, would you be able to live with yourself? What if the person you care about most is yourself? Would you accept such a fate?"

Snype glanced to the side silently at that question.

"The people I care about the most will fight Darkrai with their every breath down to the last." Cal said grimly. "So if we can't stop him, they'll die anyways, it's my only chance to protect them."

"Sure, whatever," The wizard murmured.

"But that's not what I asked you," James replied as he looked at Cal. "I asked you, would you be able to live with yourself, if you defeated Darkrai, but in the process, the person you cared about most died?"

Cal took a bit longer to answer this time, glaring at James and hating him for forcing him to answer such a painful and unhelpful question. "That's not something I think I can answer without having gone through it, but whether I can or not is irrelevant now. I've got nothing to look forward to in a world where I give up, if I lie broken at the end, either physically, or psychologically from the consequences of my actions...so be it. I won't regret doing everything I could to beat him."

"The answer is no," James stated immediately following Cal's reply. "All three of you aren't ready to Mega Evolve yet. Something will hold you back when you try, if you were to try," James explained. He pointed at Raz. "You're not a final stage. That's an obvious prerequisite you're going to have to fix," He then moved over to Snype. "You don't have the right control. Plus I still think there's something inside that's holding you back. Even if you were yelling your ass off a while ago," The Blaziken continued to explain, before he turned to Callimer. "You have the right outer disposition, but the wrong mindset. In the end, you're all not ready yet. But you can be."

"Opinion noted," Raz announced with what may very well have been a yawn.

"...Yeah I know I can pull it off. I don't need someone telling me that." Snype stated. "Just a matter of doing it."

Cal said nothing. He continued to stare at the ground and said nothing for a while, before finally lifting his head up. "Fine then, tell us. I don't care what the price is, I'm going to master Mega Evolution as well as someone can...without becoming one of them that is."

"Then pay the price," James retorted. "A thousand gold."

Snype simply reached into his bag and tossed the gold right on over. "Ready when you are." He stated. James caught the gold in the bag with a nod of his head.

"I already told you, I can't afford it! My main chunk of savings is in Gold City, I've never had the chance to get any of it. And after paying you for info before I don't have enough of what I did bring left over..." Cal said indignantly, at a loss of how to proceed.

Snype looked over to Cal. "Relax, I got you covered, Cal." Snype said as he stared at Cal.

"Nah, I got it," Razathiel called, his voice slightly distorted as he appeared to be rummaging around, half into his Magic Room. "This looks to be worth around two thousand anyway. Aha! There it is!" The wizard tossed a gemstone in the Blaziken's direction before removing himself from the portal, bringing with him a few measuring devices, which he promptly began using to further inspect his Mega Stone.

James caught the gemstone the Ralts tossed at him. He examined it briefly in his hand, before he tossed it back to Raz. "I said one thousand gold, not some rock."

"You could take that gem to a trader and demand three thousand gold for it, you uneducated slimeball," The wizard snapped as he caught the returned stone. "Fine, have it your way - your loss, prick!" He opened his Magic Room again, grabbing a couple of thousand gold coins from the inside and roughly depositing them in front of James' feet. The individual coins clattered to the ground, a notable portion landing on the Blaziken's feet as they fell into a hefty pile.

James glanced down at the coins along the ground and looked back up to the Ralts. He nodded his head without bothering to pick them up or acknowledge them. "Alright," James stated as he tossed the one bag of gold from Snype into the nearby lake after taking a quick look around. He kicked the others off of his feet and stepped over them as he approached the three.

"You've already begun the process for Mega Evolving, as I recall," James stated. "You're on the right track. The cycling thing you're doing is what you need to continue doing. But you'll over ever get as far as awakening your Mega Stone, and getting to a cut off point. I'm not sure if any of you've experienced it yet, but you may hear things. Or see things. Voices. Faces. This is a good sign. It means it's working."

Cal nodded and continued to listen, completely focused on what James was saying.

James nodded back at Cal, seemingly content that one of them had reached that stage. "Maybe all of you will eventually get to that stage, but the last hump is the hardest. There'll be a moment... you'll know it when you see it. A feeling will arise. A question might be asked. An image may flash in front of you. And you'll understand that you're knocking at the door. And all you have to do is to open the door. But to do that... you have to be ready."

James looked at the three individually, starting with Snype. "Your biggest hurdle is holding back yourself. You're not ready because there's something keeping you not ready. Emotionally, you're all over the place right now. But more importantly, you're out of balance within yourself because of whatever is holding you back. The best way to get rid of that block is either to release that hold in you, or to understand that whatever it is that you're keeping back isn't something wrong that you're doing."

He looked at Raz briefly. "You'd better evolve. If you can't, go to Karn. The Temples might be able to help you."

"Never thought of evolving before," Raz commented. "Thanks, shithead."

Snype nodded to James. The sad part was he knew exactly what was holding him back but it was just a matter of handling it correctly. He never considered himself very emotionally unstable until today. He lost his cool once... he could regain his composure in a short time. "...Right." Snype simply said.

James then turned to Cal. "I asked my question before about losing that which you care about most for one main reason: to get a read of your mindset. I asked all three of you, but really it's only you I targeted mainly, because I had a fairly good idea of what was holding the other two back. But you... you have the right outer approach. Tranquility and balance in yourself and without is key. You hold your emotions back and you enter a stage of the proceeding transformation." James stated, as he raised his Mega Stone.

"But the thing that holds you back is how you look at this," He pointed to the Mega Stone. "Your mindset about what this is, and what it is in relation to you. There are three main prerequisites to initial Mega Evolution: tranquility and balance within and without, the right level of power, and acceptance. You have the first two down relatively. Your problem? The last one. What do I mean by acceptance? I mean the acceptance what your situation actually is. I mean an acceptance of what this means to you."

"This isn't yours," James continued as he gestured to his Mega Stone. "It's not your tool, it's not your property. You didn't find it to be used by you, you were chosen as a candidate. As much as we'd like to have control over it, power over it, we don't. We can't use our will to have the stone submit to us. That's not how it works. It's closer to the other way around. We have to accept that we are being tried for this gift, for this curse, and that in the end, we are merely their servants. Many 'mon have a big problem with this last one, because many 'mon have too much pride to accept that they are less than anyone else. To be humble. It's not something many are willing to think about. Others have problems with it because it involves submission, the idea of bending to someone or something else. But the main takeaway, the main thing that these stones teach the wielders not only through the evolution, but in their own principles and lives, is in relation to those three ideas: find a balance in things in life, both within and without. Achieve great levels of success in whatever merits we possess if we gain great fortitude both physically and mentally. Accept that not everything is under your control, that life is an infinite ocean that we can contribute to, but that not everyone can control the current. All we can hope for is to find the path of least resistance and press on from there."

Cal stared at the Mega Stone in his hand after James finished speaking. After a short period of silence he squeezed the stone and muttered. "Alright then, so it is." Before turning away and walking towards a more quiet part of Ferrol, without saying anything else to anyone.

James watched Cal walk away and nodded. "Yeah, take some time to absorb it in. Maybe try it out a few times. This isn't really something I could, or should, do with you in a group. It's more for you to try on your own, and me to point you in the right direction. If there's nothing else, I'm gonna go... lie down."

Snype looked up at Cal and then back to his own stone. "Yeah I think I'll just try to grasp all the info. And uh... try to calm down anyways. Keheh." Snype said.

"Yeah, sure," Raz drawled, quickly packing his things into his Magic Room. "What a great insight into such an intellectual subject, coming from the guy who thought that ten 'mon wouldn't choose the first path out of six... worth every single fucking gold coin..." The wizard huffed and took his leave, turning briefly to blow a quick raspberry at James as he stomped off.

 

[Turnip]

Hey Look A Post With Snype And Raz In It How About That?
Featuring Snype and Razathiel. Go figure.​

Snype was just casually walking by the lake. He'd been pacing back and forth along it for some time now, still hanging onto his bag and everything. Despite being in the forest, the entire day was extremely stressful for him. Quite suddenly, the figure of a Ralts approached, landing with a soft thud close by. Razathiel was perched upon his staff, which had slightly embedded itself into the ground beside Snype on impact.

"Fine weather for inconsequential pacing, eh, minion?" The wizard said, looking in front of himself and shaking his head in confusion momentarily. He hopped off of his staff; Snype was one of the few 'mon he could talk to on foot without having to look very far upwards.

"Heya Raz. Yeah just a long freakin day. Long story." Snype said as he just decided to sit down and move toward the edge of the lake.

"Well, a long story would hardly come from a short day, now would it?" Raz said with a smirk, psychically flicking the dirt from his staff before taking a seat too. "I've got word you have the new books we got in Anatellia, so I'm afraid I'll have to take them from you. By force, if necessary. When you're done, of course, no need to feel rushed."

"Tsk, Here I have the guardians book on me. This stuff is heavier then it looks." Snype said as he placed the book down beside him. The Sableye scooted up a little closer and stuck his feet in the water. "Go ahead and give it a read."

"Ah, wonderful," The mage said, taking the book and placing it on his lap. He then took out his mega stone and several measuring implements he'd used before and placed them on top. "I'll read it later. For now, there are slightly more pressing matters to attend to."

"Sure. Whatcha need?" Snype asked.

"James," Razathiel said simply, before turning to look at the Sableye beside him. "How the fuck are we supposed to keep him from turning on us?"

"I keep paying him of course. Keheh" Snype stated. "Look if Darkrai does offer to pay double and I can't keep up then I need to figure out how to use my Mega Stone. That is if Darkrai really decides he wants to." Snype said. "Or hell maybe not just Darkrai. Someone else could be stashing a ton of cash as well."

"Mega Stone?" Raz seemed to hold in a chuckle. "Regardless of any of that, we're still lugging around someone who can turn coat at the drop of a bag of gold. An extortionately large bag of gold, true, but they don't even need to have it up-front - and if James later finds out they lied and didn't have it, big whoop. Sure doesn't make us any less inconvenienced. Or dead."

"Sheesh you know its one thing after another. Look I don't know what I plan to do alright? I'm keeping him around because I know we wouldn't stand a chance in a fight and he holds valuable information. For now I'll have to figure it out as we go." Snype replied.

"You mean you haven't-?" The Ralts raised his voice momentarily, but stopped, put a hand to his forehead and sighed. "I was hoping you had some idea on how to deal with this. Giratina knows, I don't. If we hire him and use him, he can go right over to the enemy. If we don't hire him, he can just go right over to the enemy. I suppose I can't blame you for taking the decision that at least gives us more time to think."

"Course. That's why I hired him. I just didn't expect him to have a Mega Stone on his side... for now we just have to learn whatever we can until my wallet can't handle him anymore." Snype stated as he layed down on his back. "Why is it that I feel like I've been more in charge than Guardia? Either I'm selfish or the stress is getting to my head. Keheh."

"Well, Guardia does like to insist that she isn't necessarily the leader," Raz noted, leaning down towards his Mega Stone. "In spite of being the one to set this ragtag group up. It doesn't surprise me that you two take turns in taking charge- hell, even I may well have had a few moments."

"Tsk. Guess it just shows how open we are with the group but that's probably one of our weaknesses as well... though hell who am I to tell someone how to run things?" Snype said with a shrug. "This is the same stuff I've done with the thieves"

"What do you mean, the same stuff?" Raz asked.

"Often letting thieves run about and never getting all extremely bossy on them necessarily" He replied. "Not to say I don't have times where I need to drop down authority though. I can't run a giant organization so lazily."

"Naturally," The Ralts agreed. "Though I'm not entirely sure how a lack of dictatorial command amidst a group of such influential 'mon can be considered a weakness, necessarily."

"It can backfire. If you don't try to demand authority, mon can get carried away and try to challange that authority. Mon have tried it back when I was starting out. Its a very frustrating experience. I mean, imagine if I decided to call you the minion! I doubt you'd be very happy about that! Kehe!" Snype said with a laugh.

"Oh, come now," Raz chided with a chuckle and a smirk. "I'm trying to have a reasonable discussion here - there's no need to go into the realms of the completely ludicrous."

"Haha! Hey talking about ludicrous things can be pretty amusing too you know!" Snype said with his own smirk.

"You're not entirely wrong," The wizard admitted. "Dying to share an example, are you?"

"Kehe! Sure I'll start off! Here's something ludicrous! Me joining the Gold Tribe! Kehe! Imagine how that'd play out!"

"You mean you're not Gold Tribe, Snype?" Razathiel grinned. "Could've fooled me. You know, I was a member of the Tribe once too, but big, mean Guardia kicked me out because I was just too sweet, and innocent, and unwilling to harm even the dastardliest of hooligans. It's a curse, I tell you."

"Oh no! Kehe! How could she deny someone so nice and innocent? Kehe!" Snype joked. "She doesn't know what she's missin!"

"I mean honestly, with the way I'm treated you'd think I'd be a maleficent magician with glowing red eyes," The Ralts chuckled, waggling his eyebrows. Suddenly, he perked up. "Oh, shit- just an idea, if seriousness can return for just a moment: what if you use your command of James to, instead of using him as per normal, use him... well, for other, let's say, errands. Away from any possibility of others recruiting him. You think that could work?"

Snype rubbed his chin. "Hrmm... I could, but he does get pretty frustrated when he's not out fighting stuff. He doesn't seem like a patient fella. Plus he'd wanna be near me to make sure he gets his pay I'm sure. I could probably make something work if it comes to that though."

"Well, I sure hope so," Raz sighed lightly before clearing his throat. He gestured to the Mega Stone on his lap. "So, how are you doing with yours? Want to aim for a work around, or are you going the traditional route? I think it's fairly plain to see what I'm up for..."

"Hmm... well I think I'll attempt the traditional route. If you do find some work around I would like to know. More importantly if you're going to find a work around, you should find a means to use them without them, ya know, killing us." Snype said.

"That would be the plan," Raz murmured with a slight smirk. "But such is always a danger when working with objects containing so much energy in such a dense space. Just be glad they're not fragile."

"Right... guess if something blows up I'll know why then eh? Kehe!" Snype joked.

"I don't think this insight is required to know that any explosions around here would be down to me, that's just common sense," The wizard grinned. "But I'll let you know if I come to some kind of solution without inadvertently reducing this fort to a crater."

"Keheh, thanks. It'd be a good counter toward Darkrai really. But if we did learn of a workaround that'd cause trouble if others found out.." Snype paused for a moment. "...bah I'm getting ahead of myself again."

"Well, it doesn't have to be something that's necessarily accessible," The Dreadmage said. "Just something that is a better alternative on my end. And besides, it's not as though I'll go around telling everyone about it if I find out, even in spite of the fact that Mega Stones are bloody rare as it is. Not even mentioning the fact that you supposedly have to find one tailored to your own species - perhaps I'll manage to find a workaround for that, as well. Who knows? Early days, yet. I have to say, I'd much rather these things weren't quite so absolutely indestructible. Ha, I wonder if I could make a suit of armour out of these things if I gathered up enough!"

Snype chuckled at the thought. "Keheh... well guess that'd be worth a go. And I spose that puts less pressure on me. Kehe... I just don't want someone going off and being too crazy with all that power should they learn to control it like James can. A mon like that is dangerous... and heck you're the one researching it. Guess if I'm your minion I shouldn't worry too much though eh? Kehe" Snype said in a joking tone.

"Well, I hardly expect Guardia to let me keep this thing, or even for that matter-" The Ralts stopped abruptly as if remembering something, then cleared his throat. "I wouldn't worry about me going crazy with power, Snype. I think I've already reached my cap on that - insanity, not power - and as evil as I am, I do still have a certain villainous code of honour to abide by."

"Phew... that's relieving to hear from you Raz." Snype said with a grin.

"If you say so, Snype," Razathiel murmured, pausing for a few moments before asking: "Do you have much experience in real estate, Snype? Wouldn't happen to be a few abandoned castles anywhere you know about, eh?"

Snype chuckled. "Keheh! Weeelll... I have done a bit of adventuring awhile back. I may have found a few abandoned places to salvage things from... kehe. Lookin for a new place to call home?" Snype said.

"Oh, well, I mean I'm always on the lookout," Raz said bashfully. "But you know how it is, always on the move. Magic Room is pretty fucking fantastic, but what's a villain without a villainous castle, right? A fortress, a lair - somewhere idiots won't bother coming near on pain of death! Or, erm... well, I guess it depends on the idiot. Could easily be stupid enough to not care- some 'mon won't bother coming near on pain of death! And I could set it up with magic candles and suits of armour and trap doors and secret hallways," The Ralts paused to giggle with villainous glee. "It's like housekeeping, but evil!"

"Keheh, I hear ya. Yeah if I find a place I could definitely think up a few traps for ya too. I mean considering where I live, I have a bit of experience with alot of clever stuff to spook folks! If ya let me pitch in anyways. Kehe" Snype replied.

"Oh, of course, certainly, certainly. When the time comes. I'm sure your input would be more than valuable."

Snype grinned and kicked at the water a bit. "Keheh! Good! When this is all over and I end up with free time I'll be sure to drop on by!" Snype said as he was about to pat him on the back but quickly remembered how he didn't like being touched. So he placed his hand back down. Raz glanced at it momentarily, but dismissed it. He didn't have anything on his person to steal, he reasoned, even if Snype was feeling particularly cheeky. The wizard seemed to ponder something for a moment before speaking up.

"You know, I feel now is as good a time as any to ask - you can't tell how old I am, right? Like, it's hard to guess, that's the sort of thing I should go for, really. Just checking."

"Not really. Keheh. I'd be a hypocrite if I went and said you were like thirteen or something but I can tell you're older than that. How bout me? Can you tell how old I am?" Snype asked curiously.

"I can't particularly, though I could take a guess based on your connections," Raz answered. "But why would saying I'm thirteen make you a hypocrite, exactly?"

"Keheh! Cause I've been though the same spot! You'd be surprised how many mon call me like, 18 or younger due to my personality! Fun fact! I'm actually 52." Snype said.

"Ah, I see. Yes, I can definitely see why people would think that," The wizard snickered. "I just had to check, in case people seemed to be getting a uniform idea - even if it was the wrong one."

"Keheh, well I don't exactly say I blame them either. Guess we both do look pretty young. At least you can evolve though! I'm stuck being a shorty forever! Kehehe!" Snype said with a laugh.

"While it's all well and good we both look young, but, at least with me, it's quite evident after just a few seconds that I'm pretty obviously fucking not," Raz said with a roll of his eyes. "Or at the very least, older than the average age of a Ralts - is there actually a rough estimate you get from me, or is it actually indiscernible?" He paused. "And as for the prospect of me evolving, I wouldn't get your hopes up."

"Keheh, hey suit yourself. The Ralts look is very deceptive toward your enemies I'm sure!" Snype said with a little chuckle. "Though everyone knows me so can't say I can have that element of surprise... but thats thinking from a thief's perspective... but uh... if I were to estimate I'd say like, somewhere in the 30s perhaps? If I were to estimate." Snype said.

"It's discernible?" Raz said disappointedly.

"O-oh! Uhh... well... no not really. Honestly it'd be difficult to get an exact number on you." Snype said.

"But you estimated it," The wizard replied. "It wasn't just a random guess, right? What made you think 30s?"

Snype shrugged. "Well I thought you'd be somewhat of a young adult more or less. Yeah I spose it was a bit of guess but hey I tried putting two and two together. Kehe"

"But, I mean- what made you guess that? What gave you that impression? What was two and what was two?"

"What was I right?" Snype replied.

"Not necessarily," Raz shrugged. "But when it comes to this I'd much rather people be reduced to random guesses, if I can help it. Would you mind just telling me what it is so I can fix it?"

"Well... I supposed being a Ralts would give me the impression. On top of that you kind of sound around that age on top of that.. could be me though. And you still seem to be a bit insecure about certain things I notice which alot of young adults seem to do. Kehe" Snype said.

"The shitting fuck is all that supposed to mean?" The wizard cried, confused. "And how the bloody hell did you get 30s from Ralts?"

"Well I know you aren't a child so I had to take the next step up and just figured you were alot older then that!" Snype replied.

"Hmph," Razathiel crossed his arms and shut his eyes. "I could be three-fucking thousand for all you know!" He opened one eye. "Okay, maybe not quite that old."

"Tsk well I probably wouldn't doubt ya. Heck if I know but you do seem rather protective on your age I notice! Kehe! And I spose some other things..." Snype said as he scratched his head.

"The less people know about me, the better. And what 'other things' are you bloody well talking about?" The Dreadmage demanded, though he immediately regretted it.

Snype snickered. "Ya still haven't explained the whole foot stuff! Seriously are they like little blobs are what?" Snype said with a small laugh. Right into his trap!

"Are you fucking serious with the fucking feet?!" Razathiel yelled, jumping up, knocking over the things on his lap. He pointed to his leg. "Just look! It's not difficult! Thigh, knee, foot, heel! They're just longer, wider feet than yours! I don't understand what's so mystifying! I'd be more concerned with your own - how do you even stand on those tiny fucking things?!"

Snype blinked as he was introduced to how a Ralts legs work. "Wow I thought you like scooted on your knees. They're really that wide eh? Uh... as for mine... er..." Snype lifted his foot out and wiggled his toes a bit. "Well, I guess we're just born with pretty darn good balance. Kehe! I don't even know how you walk on those! Can you even stick them in the water? Kehe"

"I walk around all the time!" Raz cried, pacing back and forth as a means of demonstration. "And no, my feet do not explode when they come into contact with water, thank you very much, I can make contact with liquids just fine."

"Kehe, prove it!" Snype said. He was enjoying messing with Raz like this. Especially over something as silly as this. The wizard only seemed to fume in response, clenching his fists before stomping over to the water and standing in it. After a couple of seconds he walked back, removing the water from his robe and legs with a Psychic gust that sent it flying directly at the Sableye's face.

"Pmmmfftttt!" Snype muttered as he was splashed and sent tumbling right into the water himself. "Keheh! Well take credit in having more patience with me than Guardia! She would have smacked me in the face ages ago if I did that to her! Kehe!" Snype laughed.

"Oh, really?" Raz mocked surprise, sitting back down and replacing the things he'd thrown off his lap earlier. "Odd, I've never seen her smack anyone in the face when it was justified."

"Well last she did that I had her in tickle range. Kehe" Snype commented back.

"To me that sounds like nothing but an overwhelmingly terrible idea," Razathiel commented dryly.

"Oh I even got her to hug me too to add onto that! Kehehe!" Snype would add.

"Well, I had assumed you'd known each other for, well, at least longer than I have..." The Ralts noted, raising an eyebrow at Snype. "I'm not entirely sure why you're bothering to tell me this, though."

"Cause I know it'll drive her crazy. Kehe!" Snype continued.

"You expect me to mention it to her or something?" Raz questioned, putting a hand on his chest. "There's no way I'm stepping into the firing line like that."

"Aw suit yourself. I'm always within firing range of Guardia! Kehe" Snype said. "Well... guess she was in my firing range earlier but... hrm..." Snype paused for a moment. "Gah... she's probably still pissed at me. Like more than usual perhaps..."

"Buy her ungodly amounts of ice cream," The wizard shrugged. "It'd work for me. If it doesn't, then we may as well just end her, because she'd have fallen into an endless pit of hate and despair."

"Keheh, ya know maybe I'll actually consider that when we all loosen up a bit." Snype said with a grin.

"I'm not sure exactly when or how you expect that to happen," Razathiel noted doubtfully.

"Keheh..a guy can hope I spose." Snype said with a shrug as he layed on his back..

"Speaking of that," The Ralts pondered for a moment. "What in blazes is an evil wizard supposed to do for fun around here? Guardia was apparently stumped in that department, which hardly surprises me. I've got a few books to read and this mega stone to occupy me for a little while, but they're hardly day-fillers. Until we're back on the road, I'm stuck without an objective and apparently my regular diabolical activities aren't allowed. Bastards."

"Play some pranks? Kehe. Thats what I do when I'm bored though I've been checking on refugees recently myself to help Guardia out a little bit." Snype replied.

"Pranks?" Raz repeated, as though considering it. "Eeeehhh, I'm not sure that's particularly my style. More something a thief can do for fun, as opposed to something an evil wizard can do, hm? Though I suppose seeing as the things evil wizards do are off the table, anything counts as a reasonable suggestion. I'll take a mental note."

"You have stuff I wish I could use for pranks! Kehe! Magic has infinte possibilities! Drop a pie on someones head or something! It'll be funny! Just a basic suggestion at least."

"You... you know I can't conjure pies, right?" The wizard asked.

"IT was just an example! Kehe! Conjure up water and dump it on everyone thats bothering you! It'd be fun!"

"I can't conjure-! Snype, that's not a thing. I can do fire, but that's Hidden Power, not anything to do with Fairy magic... aside from that, though, you do make an... interesting point."

Snype laughed. "Keheh, alright alright. Still and example! Well we have a lake here. Can't you like use it to throw water at people walking by? I dunno what other stuff you can do exactly."

"I suppose I could... though I would of course have to pick my targets. Honestly, I haven't really had much experience in using my powers for anything but killing - in an offensive way, at least. I guess Psychic is a power but really it just feels like an extension of the self."

"Uh...right! So ya should get to practicin! Hey see that Furret walking by? There's your target! Go get em!" Snype whispered.

"The Furret?" Razathiel glanced over to the 'mon's position, frowning at them in confusion before turning back to Snype with the same look on his face. "The fuck's the Furret done?"

"He hasn't done a thing! But that's why its an innocent prank! Go on! Throw some water at him! It'll be funny trust me!" he whispered back.

"But it's less effort," Raz said slowly, extremely confused. "To just let the Furret... walk by...? Like, I have had zero interaction with this Furret. Why would a prank target them when there are far more deserving 'mon to aim at? And besides, it's evening! Water's cold, and it'll get soaked up in all that fur - that's potential hypothermia! No way I'm having anything to do with that, the bloody goldies'll kill me!"

Snype shook his head. "Man you're no fun. For an evil wizard you sure do care about others' well being." Snype said with a chuckle as he got up. "Well I'm sure you'll come up with a good reason to prank someone along the lines!" Snype said as he patted his back. Intentionally this time. The Ralts jolted to attention and reached a hand behind his back.

"The fuck did you just put on my back?" He cried.

"Keheh, nothing! That was the prank! Kehe!" Snype said with a laugh. "Just wanted to see if you were paying attention."

Razathiel grunted angrily, standing up and removing his robe psychically and spinning it, giving it a once over before placing it back on himself. Snype humorously covered his eyes as he removed his robe. Raz crossed his arms and glared at the Sableye.

"The bloody hell are you doing now?" The wizard snapped, still glowering at Snype.

"Ya should warn me before ya do somethin like that! Kehe" Snype continued to tease as he uncovered his eyes.

"Something like what?"

"Just taking off your robe in public like that! Kehe!" Snype said with a laugh.

"What?" Raz asked, more confused than angry now. "I don't wear my robe all the time, you know. You don't even have a robe yourself! Almost nobody else has a robe! You think I'm ugly, or something? Don't like looking at Raltses? Have I been shiny this whole time and been completely unaware?"

"No! You're not ugly at all! Kehe! Uh..." Snype blinked for a moment. "Uh... maybe I should just drop it before the conversation strays to something else... eheh"

"I have no idea what the fuck you're getting at," Razathiel said grumpily. "Is this a verbal prank or something?"

"N-well I mean kinda! It was a joke about... ugh Raz you're gonna dig us into a huge hole here if we keep discussing it." Snype said. Before things could get any more weird though, the Furret from before seemed to be staring at the two.

"Uhhhh... what are you two talking about?"

"Not entirely sure," Raz frowned, gesturing to Snype. "I'm trying to get this dickhead to tell me."

"Dammit stay outta this! I was making a joke about how he was taking his robe off in public! I guess I'm the only one who gets it though." Snype said with a shrug.

"Hmm," The Ralts folded his arms, but he didn't immediately appear to be quite so angry any more. "Your sense of humour got shot pretty suddenly, there. Maybe you should get some rest."

"Uh... yeah sure." Snype said as he turned his head away for a moment. "I uh... think I'l see what everyone else is up to in that case."

"Fair enough," Raz shrugged, before turning and raising an eyebrow at the Furret. "The bloody hell are you doing here, again?"

"O-oh uh... was just curious and wanted to see what you two were talking about..." He said rather bashfully.

"Oh, of course - so you looked at me, Razathiel the Dreadmage, feared evil sorcerer and psyker throughout Valkaria and beyond, and thought: 'Boy, do they look approachable', hmm?"

"Well uh, you two seemed like you were having a good laugh so... yes you did seem approachable." He said with a confused look on his face.

"Do the words 'feared' and 'evil' mean nothing to you?" Razathiel snapped.

The Furret just stared blankly. "You look kind of young to be very feared." He replied. Oh snap. The Dreadmage only narrowed his eyes in response, before with a mere flick of his hand a huge orb of water engulfed in psychic energy was tossed at the hapless Furret, drenching him and sending him, coughing and spluttering, to the floor. The Furret ended up being tossed away by the water and sprawled along the floor with a dazed look on his face. Satisfied, Raz began to waddle away.

"In retrospect, perhaps I should have taken your suggestion sooner," The wizard mentioned dryly to Snype.

"Told you It'd be funny. Kehehe" Snype commented.

"I wonder if killing him would be any funnier...?" The Ralts wondered aloud.

"Uh, probably not. Keheh..." Snype said back.

"Fair enough. Leave him to suffer in his own dampness, I suppose."

 

[SV]

Fort Ferrol - Are you Ready?

"M-me?" The Queen of Tollen asked with astonishment. Her projection in the Network Point placed one hand to her chest and stared almost blankly at some point on the ground in front of her.

Guardia nodded toward her. "That's what we discovered in Anatellia. I know, it's a lot to take in, but when the time comes, we'll need you to step forward and become who you were chosen to be."

The Queen remained silent through the Network projection, as if she were deep in thought. Perhaps she was trying to process this. The others at the projection were not quite as quiet.

"But, this is preposterous!" Lord Marrow stated. "How can this be the case? Why choose her? Why any of this? Are you sure your sources are accurate, Guardia?" The Slowking Lord asked.

"It's accurate, believe me, Vee stated so itself," Guardia explained. "The Victini said it might go down to Tollen at one point to keep an eye out on the Queen.

"I am sorry, I do not believe this," Marrow stated again. "How can any of this be true? About Guardians?! About turning into Legendaries! It sounds very mystic to me."

"Why would the Gold Tribes'mon lie to us about this?" Lord Durania chimed in.

"I do not suggest that she is lying, merely that her information is inaccurate!" Marrow spat back.

"The source is from a legendary, Marrow, do follow along," Lord Durania responded with an annoyed look on his face.

"That doesn't make it entirely accurate!" Marrow cried.

Guardia meanwhile began to roll her eyes and shake her head at the useless back-and-forth exchange between the two nobles. She focused instead on her attention toward the Queen, who had been silent in all of this. She was still gazing blankly into the distance. Guardia couldn't tell if she was staring at something in particular on her end, or if she was just daydreaming, or simply processing what was being said. "... Queen, are you alright?" Guardia asked, which caused the bickering nobles to stop talking and turn toward her as well.

"... It began a few months prior," She muttered lowly. "It was just a whisper, a voice I'd hear as I'd turn the corridor, a low whistle of the wind as I opened my window. Or so I thought. I do not believe it came from without, but from within, now."

"What do you mean?" Guardia asked with curiosity.

"It has been nagging me for quite some time now," The Queen explained. "I would hear it at random times. It started low, but as time had passed on, it grew louder. It was a voice. I could never tell who's, but it would speak. And then I realized it was speaking to me. I would hear it in the halls. I would hear it in my chamber. I heard it during our meeting before your departure."

"What would it say?" Guardia asked.

The Queen's gaze met the Zangoose's. "It would always say the same thing," The Queen replied lowly. "Are you ready?"

 

[SV]

Fort Ferrol - Deciding where to go

After a good period of rest, the group gathered together once more in the Gold Tribe hut to determine their next course of action. Guardia had contacted multiple places to get updates on what was going on everywhere. She didn't necessarily like everything she heard, but at least she now had enough information to inform everyone about what was happening. Plus, Alex had returned with a major update from Beatruce. A lot of it wasn't good, but there was also some good things to come out from there too.

As soon as everyone had arrived, she nodded her head and began. "Right, looks like we're all here. We're here together to decide where we'll be going next. But before we make that choice, I want to update you on all information that we have. Starting with probably one of the biggest pieces of news, which most of you should be aware of now. Penance has gone over to Darkrai's side. He's an Agent now. I don't know if it has anything to do with it, but within the last few days, there's been multiple offensive initiated by that side around the same time. Tollen, Valkaria, and Karn all have been under heavy siege now. Karn seems to be holding on fairly well so far, from my inside source, but Valkaria and Tollen aren't doing as well. They're not out yet, though."

Guardia looked over a few notes on the table, then cleared her throat and continued, trying to maintain a stonewall expression. "Beatruce... lot's of news coming from there too, but the most important one regarding these attacks is that Darkrai's forces are confirmed in the north regions there too, but they don't seem to be coming from the same source as Karn's, from that Path of Nations camp. It seems like they're coming from another source. Only now do we know where it's from," She stated as she gestured to Alex beside her.

Alex fingered the bracelet he wore, "We're lucky to have gotten that info when we did. With the Seekers leaving... well, things have gotten bad. As you all know by now, I had to get out of there when the Seekers keeping guard over me departed. There is some mon up there to the north named Bastille, The Priest. He's the one in charge of the plague. It's the same deal as Tollen, those caught up in the plague are just... pure feral. Lots of them are making up the army over there now. Bastille has some normal mon with him, but less than plague victims. It's moving faster now, since the Seekers aren't helping to keep it back. We think Bastille is holed up in the north, given that's the origin of the plague itself. But... that's really all we know."

Guardia nodded at Alex's explanation, and continued off of that. "With the Seekers gone, the plague will only get worse in Beatruce. But now we know who is making it. If we take out this Agent, the plague should be destroyed. Or at the very least stop spreading. One other thing about Beatruce though, the Great Vantage, one of the points Alex mentioned before, if you recall, that's where the Gambler's note said that the spirit of Cresselia is at. Which means she's at the heart of infected territory. There's reports that the Beatrucian Gold Tribe are also there. On the other hand..."

Guardia pointed to Karn on the map. "Karn might be a good place to go as well. Karn's got the biggest and strongest army, by far. If we'll be able to secure it, it would be a huge boost for us. We could deploy part of them to Tollen, or Valkaria, or both. There'd be plenty for both. But there's no telling what will happen since Darkrai now began invading, and if they'll be in their full strength if we don't go now. Another point of interest, the Temples, would be a big help for us. They might reveal more on Darkrai's plan. They can also possibly give us a bit more insight on the Mega Stones, and last but not least, tell us the last piece of Cresselia: her Soul Stone. I talked to James briefly," Guardia stated as she gestured to the Blaziken outside of the tent. "He told me that the Emperor has created territories for each of his Five Grand Generals, as a way to keep them from killing each other. This territory where the Temples are at, actually belong to James, since he is one of the 5 Generals. If we were to go now, we could pass through there and get to those Temples without a problem. If we wait and go to Beatruce first, though, the path might not be as open, if there at all."

"If I had to be honest." Obsidian stated, "I would say choosing either path is wrong." He sighed, "If we go to Karn first, there is a chance that the spirit ends up infected, or dead. Meaning that part has to be reincarnated again and we lose out on the location. On the other, we go to Beautruce, and we lose the path to Karn. I just don't know in this case. It seems either way we go, we could very well end up losing the other part of Cresselia. And we have no back up plans in waiting for that part to be reincarnated again."

Snype seemed to sit there silently, in very deep thought about the whole situation. He glanced over to Guardia but then just stared straight ahead as he continued to think about it. Guardia made a quick glance to Snype at the response of him staring in her direction briefly, but she remained silent. Another person spoke up, however.

"My vote goes to Beatruce," Abel stated with a bit of annoyance. "This is a no-brainer. We have proof that a piece of Cresselia is there. And if we help the Beatrucians out in getting rid of the plague, not only will the entire plague be gone everywhere else should it pop up, but we'll have the aid of the Beatrucian army. Which by the way is likely the second strongest force at this point, even with the plague infecting us. How much longer it'll remain that way, I don't know. But no doubt it's taken a lot of casualties."

"I respect your point, Abel, but I feel," Thomas began as he cleared his throat somewhat nervously. "Going to Karn may suit us better at this point. I imagine Darkrai's force doesn't have direct knowledge on where Cresselia's piece is. And if we can get the Karnian army and knowledge of the soul stone, then we'll know where all the pieces are and pick them up accordingly."

"You forget that Penance is on Darkrai's side now. Chances are they'd find Cresselia sooner rather than later." Snype spoke up. "I'm worried about my thieves as well as the rest of the folks within Beatruce... Darkrai knows we're after Cresselia so we should act accordingly... at the same time I'm still concerned about Karn. I originally wanted to go there first but more complications continue to pop up..." Snype crossed his arms and thought on it more.

"Penance is on Darkrai's side, but he wasn't there with us when we found out about Cresselia's last piece," Thomas explained. "Nor did anyone have a chance to relate that information to him. So we should be safe on that point. But if we don't go to Karn now, there's no telling how much the situation will change later."

"I am still on the side of Beatruce," Anna began. "Paths or no paths we have not only a confirmation of the hundreds of citizens dying, but now a possible way to stop it. Our intervention in Beatruce can save the citizens there! And, for any objections to that point, a piece of Cresselia is there too. There is a risk in going to Beatruce, but now that risk has a very obvious reward other than saving the lives of these people and getting the help of Beatruce. The longer we wait the stronger Darkrai's army gets. As formidable as Karn's forces are they can't fight off the turned forces of Beatruce plus the thousands Darkrai already has under his command. We may lose our path to Karn, but we have a diverse set of minds here. When one path closes we can find another one."

"I'm set on Beatruce then." Snype stated. "I don't see a reason why we shouldn't. If we look away for another moment, It could end up infecting Gold City."

"And besides that." Cal joined in. "We've gone around Beatruce long enough, not only is it plenty practical to go there, we owe the Beatrucians our loyalty. They're the one group in all this that we aren't looking to convince of anything, they've been on our side the whole time, and we owe it to them to help."

"About damn time," Abel murmured from the side of the room.

Guardia nodded at the respondents and spoke up again. "Then I think we have our next place set. Normally, I'd try to give a bit of info about the place, not a lot of us have been to these places. But I know for Beatruce, at least half of you have been there, and we happen to have someone who's from there," She gestured to the Medicham leaning across the wall. "Abel, care to say a few words about the place before we go there."

Abel pushed himself off the wall. "For those that don't know, Beatruce's most sacred principle is fairness in all things. Trade, debt, crime. If one does something, expect the same to be done to them. This is what we pride ourselves on. So if we help them out getting rid of the plague, for example, you can bet your ass that they'll return the favor by helping us with Valkaria. This isn't a possibility like Tollen or Anatellia. This is a promise," He stated, before holding up a hand. "One thing I should point out though, Beatruce and Karn don't have the best relationship. I have a feeling the Senators and the Overseer won't be too keen on deploying troops to places with Karnian troops. At least not without assurances. But that's for a later talk if ever we do get Karn's army."

"No!" A shrill voice cried out, coming from the one and only Razathiel. The wizard had slammed his staff onto the floor and appeared to be fuming. "Under no circumstances can we go to Beatruce!"

Annabelle jumped at the sound of Raz's voice, but relaxed when she realized it was just him. "N-No? Why not, Razathiel?"

"Because," The Dreadmage growled. "I want to be awkward!" Raz paused abruptly and giggled to himself, his demeanour changing in an instant. "I'm just kidding, everyone; Beatruce it is, I suppose."

Anna stared at the Dreadmage wide eyed for a moment before she fell into her own giggling as well. "Are there any other objections? Real or not."

Rattles gave no response, continuing the silence she'd held throughout the entire meeting. Her segments slowly rotated in different directions as they usually did when she was in thought, and her eyes stared intently at the faces of each attendee, constantly drifting from one to another.

"Oh yeah," Raz murmured in realisation, gesturing to Rattles as he questioned the others. "Who the bloody hell is the Ferrothorn?"

"A new member to our team," Guardia answered as she gestured to Rattles. "Everyone, this is Rattles. She doesn't talk much, but she's basically the daughter of one of our older Gold Tribes'mon. I'm told she'll be a valuable asset to the team."

"And she's an excellent conversationalist." Cal piped in. "She isn't completely caught up on current events though it seemed Needlestorm was only able to tell her so much, she'll get there soon enough though. You should like her Raz, you won't have to listen to her speak, ever, and she writes, and you like to read."

"What exactly do you mean by that?" The wizard questioned in reply, raising an eyebrow in curiosity, but with a hint of dread.

"That you won't have to hear any 'pointless goody two-shoes goldy rhetoric' from her of course." Cal said, with an ear-to-ear smile that just dared the dreadmage to argue.

"No doubt a positive, but..." Razathiel scratched his head, perplexed.

Rattles stopped spinning, focusing entirely on Raz now. After a few moments of silence, she simply waved one of her feelers at him in greeting, just as she had with James. Then the silence resumed.

"Erm, yes, hi," The mage replied, still a little confused. "Is there anything else?"

"I don't think so," Guardia stated. "I think we've said everything we need to say. Everyone, take the week to rest, recover, and prepare however you need to. In a week, we're going to Beatruce."

 

[Megaman765]

Snype and Guardia- Making up

After the short meeting concluded, Snype made his way outside. He still had a couple of preparations to make. It had been some time since had been in Beatruce and on top of that, he was afraid of the fates of his own thieves. Able was from Beatruce as well so he wouldn't be surprised if she would want to come along as well.

Guardia was strolling more casually outside of the meeting area, having come out a while back after getting a few other things sorted. She spotted the Sableye in the distance, but hesitated at the moment in approaching him. She figured he may not want to talk things over yet, so she walked by, and decided she would only talk if Snype initiated the conversation first.

Snype looked back at Guardia and seemed to hesitate a bit as well. At first he was thinking Guardia would initiate the conversation but she was probably a bit upset at him for before. "...Guardia..." Snype said hesitantly. He didn't want to go off making a scene in public but he had to get it out anyways. "you uh... want to talk? I uh..." Snype simply stated, giving an awkward pause. "Dammit I'm not gonna be subtle about it. Guardia I'm sorry... that was really out of line for me to go off an just explode on you like that. I-I know you're going through hell yourself and me going off and doing my own thing isn't making it any better, You didn't deserve that crap at all. I-I mean-"

Guardia held up a hand to motion for Snype to stop. "Don't worry about it, it's fine," She answered with a smirk. "Everyone needs to rant sometimes, so it's good to let it out."

Snype sighed in relief at that. "Y...yeah... man I haven't gotten that angry in such a long time... I just wish I didn't go off and lash out on you of all mon..." Snype said with a frown.

The Zangoose shrugged. "Probably better me than anyone else, to be honest. I mean, can you imagine what would have happened if you did that to Raz? Or Abel?" She joked.

"Keh. Doubt they'd care. Probably would just piss me off more. Kehe... well maybe not Raz I'm on pretty good terms with him. Kehe" Snype said with a small chuckle. "You uh... wanna sit down and chat somewhere? Odd thing to ask I guess since we just finished the meeting n all..."

Guardia looked to the sky with crossed arms to think for a moment, then looked back down at Snype and nodded her head. "Yeah, sure, I can talk for a bit. Before I get back to some leader duties. Let's go by the river."

"Kehe, sure. I'll lead the way then." Snype said as he led her out to the river. He glanced back at Guardia along the way, just having several thoughts flow through his mind and finally starting to take in what she was saying the last time they were talking. "Keheh... ya know years back this would be the part where I'd pull some kind of prank on you eh?" Snype said with a small laugh. "Before ya ask, I don't got anything. Kehe. I'd have to take time to plan something like that out." Snype continued, just wanting to talk a bit casually with Guardia.

Guardia rolled her eyes as she followed the Sableye. "Are you still on about that, though? Come on, I thought you were over fifty for cryin' out loud!" She yelled behind him as they reached the bank of the river. She propped herself down on the grass and stared off at the lake beyond the smaller river in front of them.

"Keheh, what old man Snype can't be a little nostalgic?" Snype joked with a laugh as he sat down next to Guardia. He stared off into the lake and glanced over to Guardia again. "I mean, 50 is pretty darn young for a Sableye actually. Kehe."

Guardia shrugged. "Keep telling yourself that, if that makes you feel any better," She joked half-heartedly. "It's not like my age for a Zangoose is too young anymore."

"Kehe, hey coulda fooled me" Snype said back before looking out at the lake again. "...keheh, ya know from all the way down here this is a pretty darn nice view..." Snype stated. His eyes seemed to reflect off a bit of light from the sunset as well as the light shining off the lake.

"It is," Guardia agreed. "When the sun hits the lake at just the right angle... it's a nice place to be. I'm thankful the war hasn't come to this place... yet." She added grimly.

"I uh... think its best not to worry about that. Not right now anyways." Snype said as his eyes gave a slight shimmer. "If it does come here then we'll just scare the war away right? Kehe. I think I could pull a nice prank on an army or two to keep em out. You could help out too!" Snype said with a laugh.

Guardia looked at Snype and tried to smile, but fell a bit flat. She looked back out at the lake, and then toward the fort to the side. "When we first got to Fort Ferrol after Darkrai's return, we had three Gold Tribe members stationed here, protecting about a hundred to two hundred citizens. Now, we've gotten two extra tribes'mon, plus a few squadrons of Alpha Alliance troops from Valkaria. But we also have nearly two thousand refugees around now." She explained grimly. "There's no way I can't constantly worry about that. Fort Ferrol can survive a barrage for a while, but it won't survive a direct strike from an army. Not forever. And if our defense falls, those refugees are as good as dead. This is what I constantly have to worry about. Not pranks."

"Sheesh I'm off my whole "cheering up" game after the ranting I did huh?" Snype commented back. "I understand Guardia... its the same case as my forest. Its got a bit more unique defenses but like I said, if I could, I'd try fitting more refuges inside of the forest... it'd just be difficult getting around Darkrai's troops but if I can find I way, then I'll do it in a heartbeat." Snype said to her. "I know I'm a pain in the ass and say alot of stupid stuff but I still care about you Guardia. I may be able to figure out a plan B through all this... I just hope I won't need to resort to something like that." Snype said as he rubbed his head.

"Yeah... yeah, I understand," Guardia stated back with a half-smile. "And sorry, I know you're only trying to help... it's just... well, I had a talk recently with the Queen of Tollen. Told her about everything we learned in Anatellia."

"Ah... how'd she take the news?" Snype asked.

The Zangoose Gold Tribe leader shrugged again. "All things considered, not too bad. But," She sighed. "I mean, she still was shocked. Who wouldn't be? I sure as hell would. Can you even imagine what she must be going through? She's just a kid, thirty years younger than us, and all of a sudden, we drop this bomb shell on her that she's some kinda savior for us? How the hell can someone handle news like that? Or for that matter... " She glanced over at Snype. "How would someone even be able to believe it? I look at her, this scared kid who shouldn't even be ruling a country really, and I think: 'this is the one who'll beat Darkrai?'"

"Keheh, the world is pretty crazy like that." Snype said with a smile. "I mean... I can't say I saw it coming either... well... sort of. I made the closest contact with her and all. I just held her hand and felt something really pure about the gal... I mean if I was told that I was supposed to be some kind of savior I wouldn't believe it. Kehe..." Snype said.

"Yeah... but here we are, putting all our faith in the fact that this will all work," Guardia stated. "I'm not saying I doubt it will work. I mean, I might have once had a small doubt a long time ago, but... " She smirked. "I remembered what the leader before me would have done, and I accepted it."

"I'm kind of an optimist I'll admit. I think she can pull it off if she puts her heart into it. We just gotta find the other pieces to really make it complete. Kehe" Snype said. "Heh... well it did pay off Guardia. I know I said alot of crap before but you do make a good leader Guardia..." Snype said as he looked to the side at the lake and just bashfully rubbed his head.

"I mean... it took me a few years before the thieves started accepting me. That was some of the hardest years of my life. Considering the hole I had just crawled out of and all. Keheh."

"I can imagine. Coming from one side to the other, after all," Guardia responded. "What was that moment for you? That you finally did get accepted by them?"

"I...can't even begin to describe the emotions I went through. Keheh..." Snype fell silent for a moment. "The whole time most of the thieves said it was all planned. Killing the last king of thieves through another source to take the crown...which... well...I guess I really did want to become the king all along but after the Silver War..." Snype shook his head. "Gah I'm a damned complicated Sableye. I miss when I hung out with you all the time when I was just a simple jokester. Kehe."

Guardia smirked. "But look at you all now! All respectable... ish. And kingly. What? Responsibility too much for ya?"

"R-respectable? Kehe... didn't think you'd call the king of thieves respectable... last I recall you were saying I was a real slimeball or something like that. Kehe" Snype commented back with his own smirk. "Well to be fair, your pretty darn respectable yourself so that makes the two of us right?"

"I guess it does, yeah," Guardia agreed. "Although I'd say I'm probably a step or two above you on that ladder, being Gold Tribe and all."

"Hahah, yeah ok Guardia!" Snype said giving her a hard playful nudge on her side. Guardia chuckled back and nudged him back.

"What? It's true!" She exclaimed. "I get invited to all kinds of fancy banquets and muk as a guest of honor."

"Whaaaaaatttt? Lucky! I'd love to liven up one of those! And don't say "that's why I'm not invited in the first place" cause that's a bunch of crap! Kehe!" Snype said with a laugh. "What is it one of those partys where you gotta get all dressy and fancy? I know for a fact you hate that kinda stuff! Kehe"

"Of course I do!" She exclaimed. "But you don't have much of a choice. Comes with being leader. Everyone thinks it means you can do whatever you want. Arceus I wish that were the case."

"Kehehe! Wanna switch places for a day? You can be the King of Thieves and I can be the Gold Tribe leader! You can even do that laugh I do!" Snype replied.

"I don't think you'd be able to handle my job," Guardia stated with a smirk.

"Hah! I don't think you'd be able to handle mine! Kehe" Snype smirked right back, poking her on the arm.

"Are you kidding? Yours is way more lax than mine," Guardia protested. "Sure, there's a few things I'd have to pick up on my end, but there's no way you can do what I do."

"Keheh! That sounds like a Challange Guardia! You know how much work I gotta do to make a scene whenever I drop by Gold City? That stuff takes very careful planning to know where everyone's at! Kehe!" Snype said with a laugh.

Guardia shook her head. "Not a challenge, just a statement. I'd prefer you don't completely ruin the war effort in a day, thank you very much."

Snype crossed his arms and pouted. "Kehehe, hey now I'm a better strategist then you make me out to be Guardia! Kehe" Snype said as he turned around to lean back and gaze at the lake once more. "Sides, if you became the king, you'd probly get spotted in like, 5 seconds if you tried stealing something! Kehe" Snype retorted back jokingly. "Course, maybe I'm the one underestimating you...kehe!"

"I've ran with the thieves before, so I know how not to get caught," Guardia shot back. "Plus, I've had plenty of reconnaissance training with the Gold Tribe. You on the other hand, complain about having decisions placed on you every. single. time we have any decision to make! How the heck can you be expected to handle my job?!"

"W-wha? Hey chill Guardia! You're taking this a little seriously aren't you?" Snype said. "Hey I complain but I still pull through! Just not used to all that being thrown at me at once! Guess I still do have a few things to learn. I was just joking around about the swapping thing!"

Guardia grinned. "So was I. I was just trying to get you worked up."

"Ah!...B-...You...!" Snype just stared at her. He leaned into her face and just showed off that big grin of his. "You sly bastard~ Keheh! You're stealing a few notes from me I see!" Snype said with a laugh. Considering Snype did this kind of thing to Guardia all the time, it was fitting that she threw a bit of payback his way.

"Maybe I do have what it takes to be the King of Thieves after all," Guardia stated with a smirk.

"Keheheh! Oh yeah? Well you gotta take me down first if your going to take that title missy! Comere!" Snype said with a laugh as he pounced the Zangoose in a playful manner, just laughing the whole way through.

"Wha- hey, what do you think you're doing?!" Guardia yelled with a smirk on her face as she grappled with the Sableye, before she turned him over and attempted to pin him down below her.

Snype being the scrawny little Sableye he was was quickly pinned down onto the ground after wrestling with her a bit. Snype looked up at Guardia and just gave off another cheery laugh. He was simply having fun just playing around with Guardia. "Kehe! Looks like ya finally caught me eh?" Snype joked.

"Looks like it," Guardia agreed, as she looked down at the Sableye and grinned. After holding him there for a few more moments, she pushed off and sat back down on the grass to admire the lake.

Snype just sort of stared up at her with a grin of his own when he was pinned on the ground... there'd even be a small hint at a blush on his face. Snype got up after Guardia let him go and sat down next to her. "Wish days like these would last longer..." Snype said as he glanced to Guardia, just tapping his claws on the grass. He glanced down at Guardia's hand and just gazed up to her.

"You don't really appreciate moments of quiet like this in peacetime," Guardia agreed, her full attention on the lake in front of them. "That's for sure."

Snype just sort of scooted a bit closer to Guardia. Snype had a small blush on his face and moved his hand a little closer to hers. "Guardia...thanks for always being there for me... and everyone else." Snype said as he placed his little hand over Guardia's. He was throwing caution in the wind with the gesture, mostly worried about her reacting negatively to it but at this point he didn't care. It was simply a friendly gesture...right?

"Sure thing, Sn-" Guardia suddenly felt Snype's hand rest over hers, and she froze. She looked down at the hand over hers, and then up at Snype briefly. A bit of red flushed her cheeks, before she cleared her throat and quickly rose up. "Woah, look at the time! I think I'd better get going. Got a lot of... err... Gold Tribe duties to attend to!"

Snype looked up at Guardia and smiled. "Keheh, Yeah guess time really did fly by huh?" Snype replied back. "Ya need help with anything while you're busy?" Snype asked her. He didn't expect her to get so flustered but he didn't want to press about it.

"It's fine!" Guardia replied as she began to rush away. "You do your thing and I'll do mine. See ya!"

"U-uh, sure! I'll see you around then!" Snype said feeling a little flustered himself. Snype hoped he didn't totally screw up when he did that... it was rather bold. Snype decided to sit around and stare out at the lake a little longer. "Keheh... shoot I'm a real idiot." Snype said with a laugh.

 

[Turnip]

An Attempt At Finding Clarity That Only Creates Further Confusion
Featuring Guardia and Razathiel​

Guardia roamed through the woods on the bank of the river beside Fort Ferrol. After all of the planning and conversing about their next destination had died down, she was reminded that she would meet up with Raz, to potentially discuss a few things he had not been able to say while at the ice cream shop. She wondered exactly what they could be to have the meeting away from the ears of everyone else, but she figured it was important enough to hear the Ralts out.

"Hey," The Zangoose greeted as she spotted the Dreadmage among the tall trees. She had almost missed the 'mon because a bush beside him nearly covered his enter body from sight.

"So, you came," Razathiel announced from above, slamming shut a book he had been reading and tossing it into his Magic Room. The wizard was sat across a couple of tree branches, upon which lay what looked to be some kind of sleeping bag. "Tell me: did it not even slightly irk you that I said to come alone? To come to a place so removed from the Fort? To tell nobody of this meeting?"

Guardia tilted her head. "You're not going to try and kill me, are you? Cause that won't end well for either of us I'm sure."

"So you're telling me that asking you to come here alone, levelling my staff and pointing it directly at you," Raz continued, his actions mirroring his words. "Has you feeling uncomfortable? Distrustful? Betrayed?"

"No," Guardia replied plainly as she clenched her fists on reflex. "I'm just saying if you were to try anything, it wouldn't end well. Not that I think you would. Why did you call me here, though?"

"So if I were to charge a blast of psychic energy," The Dreadmage continued even louder, ignoring the Zangoose as purple light converged at the tip of his staff. "You wouldn't think to retaliate? Perhaps ready yourself to dodge, even?"

Guardia cocked an eyebrow, and scanned over the Dreadmage, wondering for a moment how far he was planning to take this. Was he serious? The Zangoose wasn't about to back down, however. "If you wanna know, try and see," She retorted confidently. She was already preparing her body in case Raz actually did ended up trying something.

"What the **** even is that supposed to mean?" The Ralts asked.

"Meaning you'll see whether I'd retaliate if you actually tried firing at me," She responded. "Simple enough. I won't say what I will and won't do ahead of time to you."

"I asked what you'd think of doing if I charged psychic energy! I'm doing that already! Is this thing going? Is there light-?" Raz quickly leaned over to take a peek at the end of the staff. "Yeah, it's going, not sure what the **** you're on about."

"I should be saying that to you," Guardia replied slightly frustated now. "What the hell is this all about?"

"Eeeeeuuugggghhh, trust, you ****ing fool," Razathiel moaned, flicking the Psyshock up and away through the trees in frustration. "I'd expected to get something of a read, but now I've got no ****ing idea what to think - thanks for that. Prick."

"This is how you're measuring trust?" Guardia asked incredulously. "Whether or not I'd retaliate against you when you have an attack pointed at me? That's what you came up with? You're insane!"

"Well, evidently," Raz chuckled. "My insanity has been on the table for at least a month now, but come on!" The Ralts threw his arms in the air and laid back against the tree trunk. "It was an experiment- to be fair, I've had, what... zero? Zero other experiences with actually requiring a 'mon to trust me. And I mean, I guess there's- well, you did arrive, and you didn't attack me, so there's two things. Really buggered up the rest of it though, bloody hell."

"Wait, wait," Guardia held up a paw. "Are you say this entire thing was about asking how much I trust you?"

"Well, I suppose vice-versa a little, but essentially yes, obviously," Raz rolled over and looked down at the Gold Tribe leader with one eyebrow raised. "Are you seriously just getting that now? Ugh- I guess maybe it was always just stupidity after all..."

Guardia shrugged. "I thought it was pretty clear where things stood between us in our conversations before," She stated. "And yeah, it was pretty much stupidity on your part to try and bring it up in this way. But don't worry, I won't hold it against you."

"Poor retort," Raz murmured with a roll of his eyes. "D minus, must try harder. For the record, where we stand is and never has been entirely clear. I've often wondered whether your reasons for allowing me to help came from extreme stupidity, extreme intelligence, simple desperation or some mixture of the three. So far stupidity and desperation are relatively tried and tested, as may be expected - fearing the consequences of defying me or simply being too stupid to acknowledge them are commonplace, but as far as anyone having the bloody intelligence to trust me..." The wizard cast his eyes upwards in thought. "I have very little idea how far any of you fall on that spectrum, if, I suppose, you even do at all. I suppose you should probably be honoured to be even considered having that possibility," The mage fell back to rest against the tree again. "Regardless, it shouldn't be difficult to understand that I might have considered your trust in certain members of this group shaken, considering recent tribulations relating to our dear colleague Penance."

"Penance betraying was a shock," Guardia concurred with a nod of her head, as she walked over to a nearby tree and leaned on it. "But it wasn't a complete surprise. He's done something like this before. I guess I never expected him to go this deep but... oh well, it happened. But the reason I agreed to bring you along, along with others that were near stranger to me, was for a pretty simple reason," She explained as she crossed her arms. "I knew that there was a possibility that Darkrai would come back one day, but I wasn't sure that would happen in my lifetime. It was certainly a possibility if it were two or five years after, but after ten? I started having doubts. At twenty? Maybe, but to me, it started becoming more clear that his return may not actually happen in my lifetime." She closed her eyes.

"Then this all came, and I saw Gold City start to come under siege again, and at that moment, everything that I read about and hear about Darkrai came running back into my mind at once. I knew that thousands of years ago, nearly a third of the entire population of what eventually became Valkaria died trying to bring him down, and that was with Cresselia's help. I came to realize that this wasn't the same as the fight thirty years ago. This was a fight against a legendary. And at that moment... I didn't think there would be any way we could win. I mean... Cresselia was gone for hundreds of years! How were we suddenly going to find her now?!" She explained. "So I made the only decision I could. I had to get help from whatever source I could. Good, bad, if they were helpful, if they were willing to fight and aid, then I would use them. I didn't care at that moment who they were."

"Sounds at the moment like desperation and stupidity," The wizard said disappointedly. "Are you telling me there's absolutely nobody you turned down? Goodness- aghem, evilness, rather, knows how many Agents could have made it into our group if what you just said was entirely the case."

"At that moment, you're probably right," Guardia agreed with his assessment. "But then again, I thought that this may have been the beginning of the end of everything so, maybe at that point we needed a little bit of desperate," She shook her head. "It's not like I would have chosen anyone. In the end, I got mostly 'mon I knew that could help. The only ones I was unsure about in the beginning were you and Sylvio, mostly because I didn't know about you. But it all worked out in the end, so I guess I made the right call."

"Are you serious?" The Dreadmage rolled over and peered over his branch, audibly groaning as he did so. "Stupidity with a fortunate outcome is still stupidity. You're saying you've kept all of these outsiders - including me - around here, despite the fact you don't trust them in the slightest? And you have the nerve to call me insane as though it's oh-so-shameful."

"'All these outsiders', meaning you and Sylvio," Guardia corrected. "Most of the others I knew either from the Gold Tribe or from past experiences. And Sylvio Watchman knew of, so the only unknown really was you. And if anything were to happen, I know that I could take you out because we had the superior numbers," Guardia shrugged. "You can call it stupid if you like, but I have a method to my madness, since I've been doing it for longer than you've been alive. Things usually work themselves out without me having to stress about the little things like I did when I was starting up. And if I make a mistake, then I'll own up to it and live with the consequences. But I generally know how to pick my spots and when to be careful. At that moment, it was the right call."

"Oh, well to be fair I wasn't aware of your relationship with every member of the group, but you just can't be serious!" Raz cried pleadingly. "You think that the ability to reprimand a traitor completely nullifies all potential they have for serious, irreparable damage?!"

"By the time you were with us in Fort Ferrol, I was pretty sure you weren't a traitor anymore," Guardia replied simply. "There wouldn't have been any irreparable damage you would do on your part."

"Wait, what?" Razathiel shook his head. "So you do trust me, or don't you? Almost everything you've said in the past five minutes has either been incredibly vague or has contradicted itself," He dropped back out of view onto the sleeping bag that rested on the tree branch, pinching the bridge of his nose. "I shouldn't have to put up with this."

Guardia sighed. "Let me put it in simple terms. I don't think you're allied with Darkrai. I don't think you're a traitor that will betray us. But I don't trust you entirely, because of you. Your personality. Your morals. Your warped view of right and wrong. The fact that you view evil in this 'light' way. Like I said before in a previous talk we had, if it weren't for Darkrai, maybe the one I'd be fighting is you. No, I don't think you'll cause irreparable damage purposefully to us that could be a huge blow to our side. The most I think you might do is cause us trouble by doing something that you don't understand that the rest of us view as wrong."

"Have I not been doing everything in my power to rectify those problems?" The Ralts asked angrily, sighing through his nose.

"Yeah, you have," Guardia replied with a nod. "Which I'm thankful for. And which has made me trust you more. But you're still... you."

"Thanks for enlightening me on that. I'll try to keep it in mind."

"You know what I mean," Guardia responded.

"Except I don't," Raz snapped. "There's nothing more I'm able to do. In fact, I've probably already overstepped my boundaries. You hold me to an impossible standard."

"No kidding, I'm Gold Tribe!" She exclaimed. "I hold everyone to an impossible standard. Impossible standards are kinda our thing. And not every 'mon can reach them. So don't take it too personally if I don't entirely trust you. That goes the same for a lot of non-Gold Tribe members."

"I was not being hyperbolic," The Ralts said venomously. "And I hope I needn't remind you of the definition of impossible."

"I know what impossible means," Guardia replied. "Look, Raz, you've definitely proved your contribution to the team. And I trust you to help us through this thing. But if you're asking if you have my entire trust, then you know the answer. And it's not because of something you did necessarily. It's just that the only ones I trust fully is the Gold Tribe. I specifically made sure of that when I fully accepted them into the tribe. We are all of one mindset, one goal. There's no ulterior motives for us."

"Trusting me 'to help us through this thing' is all I am worried about. How you feel about me outside of the context of this mission is largely irrelevant," Razathiel explained. "My point is that I should hope you are not suspicious of any traitorous involvement on my part akin to that of Penance. It should be fairly clear that this cause is one to which I am quite impeccably loyal."

Guardia nodded. "I don't think you'll betray us like Penance, so don't worry about that."

"But," Raz countered, giving a grunt as he pulled himself up to peek over the side of the tree branch. "Do you think I could betray you like anyone else?"

"Against this cause? No."

"Ah, yes - so," The wizard raised an eyebrow at the Zangoose suspiciously. "You were completely and utterly sure that I wouldn't fire on you, back then? There wasn't a hint of doubt in your mind, even for a second?"

"There was some doubt," Guardia replied honestly. "But the reason for it wasn't because of something inherently against our cause, but maybe about your personal reasons or thoughts against me. At least, that's what I thought."

"And what reasons or thoughts would those be, hmm? How would they be justified as at all separate from the cause? Explain, go on; I'm dying to hear a well thought-out explanation as to why I'd try to assassinate you. I'm all-ears."

"It wasn't any prominent thoughts, keep that in mind," Guardia responded as she tried to keep the situation controlled. "Like I said, I thought if you would have, it would have been for something related to your thoughts on me."

"Even then, it's ludicrous to even-" The Dreadmage paused. "Then again, I suppose you left me to the mercy of Wraith earlier, so I guess that's pretty understandable - that went pretty badly by the way - but still, murder? No. Not at this point, certainly."

"That's why it was more in the back of my mind," Guardia agreed. "I don't expect you'll do anything to jeopardise us now. Right?"

"Definitely not intentionally," The wizard said assuredly. "I may not be the nicest of 'mon, but you can count on my devotion to- oh, ****-" Raz cursed as his sleeping bag slipped, almost losing balance and falling off of his tree perch. He grumbled expletives to himself as he moved the bedding back to the middle of the branch, then yelled over the edge. "Can you just bloody come up here or something? You can climb trees, right? Giratina damn it- book? Magic Room, that's fine... everything seems to be here, nothing slipped..."

Guardia glanced up as the Ralts struggled to remain up. She chuckled slightly and shrugged her shoulders. "No, thanks, I'm good down here."

"But I'm already comfy!" Raz wailed. "Or I was, anyway."

"Yeah, but climbing up here would be way too much work for me," Guardia replied as she rubbed her back. "I've had a rough week and I'm tired," She joked.

"Come ooonnn," The Ralts moaned. "I'll give you a berry! Three berries!"

"Nah, I had plenty of berries earlier."

"I'll absolve your debt!"

"I have no debt," Guardia responded firmly.

"You don't remember leaving the Iced Cream without paying?" Razathiel asked slyly.

"Actually, they usually let Gold Tribe eat for free in most places in Valkaria and allied forts or towns," She replied with a smile. "Fort Ferrol included being part of the Valkarian Protectorate."

"Uuuuuggghhh, are you serious?" Raz cried. "Fine! What do I have to do that doesn't involve me getting up?"

"Psychically float down?" Guardia suggested.

"That involves me getting up."

"Psychically," Guardia emphasized.

"Well I didn't specify, so if you can actually hear me down there: I don't want to move! Honestly, you should know better than to trivialize the psychic arts like that."

"Well, then you're out of luck!" Guardia exclaimed back. "So either deal with it and talk to me like this, or if you have nothing else to say, I'll get back to my own duties."

"Oh, come on!" The wizard moaned again. "Please?"

"Did you actually say please?" Guardia asked incredulously.

"Yes, I did," Raz snapped grumpily. "But nobody will ever believe you."

"I dunno, I'm a pretty prominent and believable person," Guardia joked. "Maybe I should go see who would."

"You wouldn't dare..."

Guardia pushed off the tree and stretched. "Well, this has been a nice talk, but I should really get going and... talk to some other people."

"Who?" The Ralts questioned. "About what?"

Guardia shrugged. "Just some 'mon. About things. Nothing big."

"Nothing about the 'p' word?"

"I have no idea what you're talking about," Guardia replied with a shrug.

"Fine!" Razathiel said dismissively. "Doesn't matter to me! I say 'please' all the time ironically, so there's really no use to it. Nothing to bother me. I don't care."

"If you say so." Guardia responded with another shrug.

"Uuuuuuuuggggghhhhhh," Raz let out a long groan. "What do I have to do to make you come up here, that doesn't involve me moving from this position until morning? Come on! The trees are comfy! Good amount of spring! I mean, it's not a bed, but a decent temporary seat, at least."

"Hmm," Guardia thought as she put a finger to her chin. "I could always use some more help with patrols around Ferrol. Help me with that later, and I'll come up."

"When and for how long?"

"Three hours, for some period before we leave to Beatruce."

"Eh, I'll probably have some time to kill anyway," Raz sighed. "Sold."

Guardia nodded and began to climb up the adjacent tree to where Raz lay. She reached a branch that was thick enough to support her and was on a similar level as the Dreadmage's. "There."

"Hello," The Dreadmage waved, now half-buried in his sleeping bag. He raised an eyebrow at the Zangoose. "Now that didn't look all that difficult. Not 'way too much work' for you, at any rate."

"It wasn't, but it was nice to make you work for it," She teased as she sat on the branch with one leg kicked over the side and the other clutched close to her knee. "So?"

"Really?" Razathiel said with a humph. "And what did I do to deserve that? Bloody reverse karma strikes again. And I thought I was evil," The wizard paused. "And I am. Other things are too, though. I'm evil."

"Yeah, OK, OK, I get that," Guardia stated as she rolled her eyes. She then fell silent as she stared at Raz. "So?" She asked again. "What else did you want to talk about?"

"Well, first of all," The Ralts began. "I'd just like to reiterate how foolish and insulting it would be to even think I'd make any move towards betrayal and/or causing anyone here intentional harm even with Penance turning and joining the other cause and any petty personal misgivings I might have with anyone here- Secondly," Raz moved on quickly. "Relay from that chat you wanted me to have with Snype about James. We considered the possibility of trying to send him on other business that would leave him less available to being bought up, but as it turns out, Snype didn't really have much of a plan for him. He took the decision which gave us a little time to consider our options, which I can't really blame him for."

Guardia mostly glossed over the first bit that was stated to her by Raz, but when the subject turned to James, her gaze once more intensified. "Right. That may have been a good call. But then again, wouldn't we want him somewhere where he can make an impact? Sending him somewhere too out of the way could be a waste of his talents."

"That's the dilemma we came to, too," Razathiel agreed. "If we use him, then we run the risk of losing him to the other side, whereas if we keep him away from possible turn-coating, then we lose all of his usefulness. Regardless, the general consensus seems to be that nobody has a bloody clue what to do with the bastard."

"Well..." Guardia shook her head as she contemplated the very issue. "Here's hoping he somehow takes himself out on one of his jobs."

"Ooh, wishing death upon another now, are we?" Raz questioned with a giggle.

"I meant getting injured so that he won't be able to fight anymore," Guardia corrected. "The only 'mon I'd wish death upon is Gabriel."

"Ooh," The wizard repeated slowly. "Wiiiiissshhhing deeaaathhh upoooonnn..."

"Shut up!" She interrupted. "That's annoying."

"Alright, alright- hehehe, this whole shebang really has been a bit of an eye-opener. You gold lot are hardly the goodie-two-shoes pricks I expected you to be - though whether that makes you more or less annoying I can't decide..."

"And deep down, you're just a small old softie, aren't you, Raz?" Guardia asked jokingly.

"Oh, I'm just a sweet little angel," The wizard said with a roll of his eyes. "Heart of gold, me."

"I wouldn't say that, but I bet deep down you do care about what's going on," Guardia replied.

"Hm?" Raz raised an eyebrow at the Zangoose. "In what sense? Which goings on are these?"

Guardia shrugged. "Just a thought."

"Just a thought?" The Ralts chortled. "You should certainly bring an argument when you make such wild accusations as me caring about things. Certainly depends on which sense of the word care you mean, too - though I suppose it's technically the same definition? Context is key, I guess."

"Bah, forget it," Guardia said as she tossed her hands briefly up in the air. She appeared slightly annoyed. "It wasn't a statement I was trying to defend, it was just a thought I had. A gut feeling. Not an argument with facts that had to be supported or anything. Arceus..."

"Alright, sorry," Razathiel shrugged. "Don't go calling down legendaries to smite me, now. Shouldn't you be saving Arceus for the good ol' Gabe you want dead so much?"

Guardia snorted. "Yeah, I don't think he'll be coming down anytime soon to help us out with that."

"What a lazy bastard," Raz commented with a smirk, gazing up at the sky for a short moment. "Suppose he's off having cocktails with Rayquaza up there somewhere."

"Yeah, maybe," Guardia agreed with a nod as she glanced toward the sky. "Or maybe he just doesn't give a damn about the rest of us down here. Or maybe he doesn't exist at all."

"Oh his existence is quite probable," The mage said. "Intelligence and benevolence, however, are entirely different matters. I have to say, my personal experience with legendaries has been something of a disappointment, and I didn't even set my standards particularly high."

"Probable, but not certain," Guardia responded. "And I'd have to say I agree with you. As far as legendaries go, the only real experience I had with any are Darkrai and Vee. Not a huge sample size. But then again, they are legendaries."

"I did see Mew that one time - at least I assume it was Mew in retrospect. Could have been anything for all I know, but the bloody pink blob wasn't all that helpful either. Darkrai is just some naïve cock-arse with a penchant for genocide. Vee, with all the power under its bloody belt turned out to be proportionately more cowardly than any single other 'mon I've come across."

"But at least Vee helped out. And wasn't a cryptic ass like the Mew was, if it was really a Mew, that is," Guardia commented.

"I suppose you're right," Raz admitted. "But it certainly doesn't take him out of prick classification."

"Not many people do for you," She added with a smirk.

"Touché, I'm barely out of there, myself," He paused to smirk back at the Zangoose. "And of course, you're very much stuck deep, deep down in the pits of prick."

"Says you," Guardia shot back. "Something tells me you pretty much think most 'mon are, so..." She shrugged.

"And would I be wrong in thinking that?" Raz questioned with a sly smile. "Prickdom is quite widespread, you know. Terrible epidemic, really - odd that it seems to coincide with whatever my mood is at the time, but I'm sure it's just a coincidence."

"I'm sure it is," Guardia nodded, feigning agreement. Her tone was noticeably sarcastic. "I'm sure it has nothing to do with the one calling people the pricks."

"Oh no, of course, that would be simply preposterous," The wizard chuckled for a moment, but shortly regained a serious tone. "Erm, speaking of, er... well, pricks, that is- did Wraith tell you about when, erm- it's not really anything, but I just assume he's told you what with that gargantuan mouth of his..."

"If you're talking about what happened with you and Obsidian, yeah, he told me about that," Guardia answered.

"Ah. Erm, good. He is unharmed, isn't he? Relatively speaking."

"You mean Obsidian or Wraith?" Guardia asked. "Both are fine, though. Good to see you concerned."

"Concerned?" The Ralts snorted. "About anyone breathing down my neck if I'd happened to harm somebody, yes."

"I'm surprised you actually didn't really fight back against him," Guardia responded. "From what Wraith said it looked like you were avoiding it."

"Well, by the time I'd realised he actually might have been intent on killing me, as opposed to simply having a small temper tantrum, Wraith had already intervened and the 'fight', if you could call it that, was over," Razathiel crossed his arms, yawning lightly and resting further back against the tree. "As much of a short fuse I might appear to have, I'm not stupid enough to fail to realise that almost any fight that could break out here is going to be far more trouble than it's worth."

"I'm glad you realize that," Guardia replied with a nod. "As far as Obsidian goes, I'll probably talk to him at some point. But I'm guessing he'll be alright for now. It's a lot to take in when someone that close to you suddenly switches sides, after all. And now he has to be the one that picks up the remains and leads the rest."

"Yes, well... I might suggest keeping him away from me for a little while, depending on his view of what happened. I'm not exactly unused to attempts on my life, but having to refrain from using lethal force to defend myself would be... let's say, awkward."

"I hear you," Guardia nodded. "Don't worry, we'll try to keep you apart."

"Don't worry yourself too much about it," Raz said with a lazy wave of his hand. "I did say it's depending on his view. Doesn't really matter that he wants to kill me - perfectly understandable - just so long as he realises it's stupid to try before the Darkrai business is over, there won't be a problem."

Guardia shrugged. "Better he doesn't think to try either way. He's not exactly a fighter."

"Agreed, I suppose," The Ralts shrugged likewise in response before adjusting his sleeping bag. "I have been trying to dial down on how much people want to kill me. Do you think I'm not doing a good enough job, or was that just a fluke?"

"I think it was just the situation," Guardia answered. "Like I said, it's a lot to take in when the 'mon who raised you suddenly switches sides."

"Somehow I'm not sure I can relate," Raz chuckled dryly.

"Probably not," Guardia agreed, and then sighed heavily. "But unfortunately I can. So believe me when I say it's not an easy thing to witness."

"Thanks for the warning, I'll be sure not to let anyone raise and then betray me," The wizard murmured. For a moment afterwards he hesitated as if realising something, before quickly shrugging it off and moving on. "Erm, anyway, I was, uh... I was thinking of putting on a little show, seeing as I won't have a massive amount to do over this week. Not sure if there'd be any problems with that."

"A show? What kind of show?" Guardia asked curiously.

"Just my usual sort of thing," Razathiel yawned. "Fireworks and other explosion-y pyrotechnics. Music, probably. Less of the villainous announcement business, seeing as I don't have anything to announce and pretty much everyone already knows who I am here... food perhaps, if anyone's willing to donate. Not much of a show without popcorn..."

"I see," Guardia nodded as she listened to Raz's explanation. "Hmm... yeah, that could actually be a good thing. A bit of a break from all of this war and fighting. Yeah, I could get behind this. Maybe gather up some things for food. Oh, and let everyone in the fort know what's happening so they don't think Darkrai's attacking."

"Oh, bloody hell," The Ralts laughed. "That would be awful, probably really should let the general populace know. Didn't really think of that. But yes, I'll be sure to tell everyone, and I'll see who I can get to help out. Everyone's invited of course, not that it's anything I can really stop people from seeing..."

"Yeah, good thinking Robert," Guardia nodded. "This'll be a nice de-stresser. I'll go see about informing the fort." She added as she prepared to hop of the tree she was situated in.

"R-Robert?"

 

[Turnip]

Dinner And A Show, But Less Dinner And More Like A Light Evening Meal Or Snacks Or Something
Featuring lots of people, and also fireworks.​

It was quite a modest evening in Fort Ferrol; moderate cloud cover, but probably not enough to cause rain, and the wind was present but largely benign. Razathiel certainly thought himself powerful enough to put on a good show whatever the weather conditions were - in fact, his performances were often enhanced by a nice bit of rainfall or even a thunderstorm, as much as they may be tricky for those with less experience - but he wasn't particularly out to prove his villainy this time, and better weather would obviously be better in regards to the food that had been laid out on the lakeside. As much as he often enjoyed the atmospheric merits of quote-unquote 'bad weather', most foodstuffs did tend to disagree with it, as indeed did most other 'mon.

Just about everything seemed to be ready, at this point. People seemed to be approaching. The show would be starting soon, so there were just a few last minute check-ups being made. The pyrotechnics were in place; large and flamboyant explosions, ready to commence at Razathiel's command. A fairly wide array of instruments from the Dreadmage's Magic Room lay organised, neatly, near the front of the lakeside. Food, as mentioned before, had been provided and was arranged atop multiple tables, all with adequate seating for all and - as Raz had insisted with great intensity - 'mon of potentially challenged size. Certainly ample accommodation for a whole lot of the Fort's populace, thanks to the help he'd received. The wizard didn't feel too bad about asking for help on civil matters, seeing as he supposed it was more evil for a villain to be uneducated in such things. Help with simple placement and lifting was perhaps a little hit to Raz's pride, but he tried not to think about it too much, and as much it may have hurt his ego, it was still... helpful.

"Is that everything?" The Dreadmage asked Anna. The Mareep was helping with organising the show, clipboard ready for all possible notation needs. Raz didn't have a clipboard, which he supposed was a decent excuse for allowing anyone to assist him with any mental activities. Any damage to his ego had been prevented, for now.

As soon as Raz asked the question, Anna's eyes went down to her clipboard. They scanned over each item quickly and with much scrutiny before she spoke.

"Yes. All of the food is prepared--cooked to their exact recommended temperatures and the quicker we get started the closer they will be to peak taste--, the tables are arranged exactly so the color of the firework accentuates the food, chairs are angled precisely," when Anna said that she looked over at the chairs to double check, look away, triple check, look away, quadruple check... they were fine, "we have the more than enough chairs of every heights--yours decorated to order--and firework wave one, two, three, four, and five are ready--we didn't get all we ordered for six and the fireworks won't come in time so we had to make adjustments," Annabelle didn't look to happy about that but she was finally done so she finally took her breath. "Unless you want the sixth wave." She looked fully prepared to go sprinting off as she had since the start of the arrangement if he did.

"I didn't ask for half of that, but that's good I suppose," Razathiel murmured, hopping up to glance at the food display on one of the tables. A thought occurred to him and he turned to the Mareep. "You didn't... did you get fireworks for all of the waves? Like... enough to go for the whole show? You know I'm powerful enough to release fiery explosions at will, I don't need that many, they were mainly just a laziness contingency- just how many did you get, exactly?"

Annabelle started making calculations in the air. "Well the sixth wave would have made it over a hundred." She still looked upset about that botched order. "So not so many." She had overseen bigger shows. "If we don't use them all maybe you can use them later?" Anna imagined the look on a sentinel's face when a firework came rushing at them out of nowhere. Put some comedy in action, yeah? "Or should we send them back?" They fireworks did cost some money.

"Over a hundred? Don't think I'd use that many if this show went on into tomorrow morning!" The wizard put a hand on his chest proudly. "I am a very capable master of performance pyrotechnics, after all. Haven't you seen my work before? At Gold City? At the races in Anatellia? Anywhere else?" Raz crossed his arms. "The pre-prepared fireworks are merely a failsafe, as this show should go on longer than my regular introductions- not that I wouldn't be more than capable of causing mass destruction for an indefinite amount of time. The time being indefinite because it would be a long time. Obviously. Anyway, **** it, no need to send them back, I can just save them for later or make use of them and take a little more lazy time..."

Seemingly out of nowhere, Snype would use Shadow Sneak to suddenly poof between the two! "Keheh! Hiya!" Snype said with that big ol toothy grin of his. "Whatcha all up to?"

"Gah!" Raz cried out and flung a Psyshock up into the air. "F-****, Snype? Yes, fireworks- ****, could you not?"

"Keheh, whaatt Its called making an entrance! Hows things goin so far with the show?"

"W-well, you should probably take note that I'm still not used to people 'making an entrance' without my death being on their immediate agenda... in retrospect, I shouldn't have used a psychic attack, anyway-" The wizard shook his head and sighed, slightly grumpy. "Anna should fill you in; she's the one with the clipboard, after all... I don't have a clipboard..."

Snype turned toward Anna and leaned toward her to peek at the clipboard. "Keheh, same question as before! What's the progress so far? kehe!"

"Everything is up and ready to go! We seem to have made an error in our fireworks purchases, but other than that things are running smoothly. I'm sure you're excited for the event, Snype?" Anna asked him with a tilt of her head.

Snype clapped his hands together. "Aw are you kidding? I'm down for any kinda party! And I'm sure this one will be a total blast! Keheh!... uh... no pun intended! But uh... whatcha plan to do with all those extra fireworks anyways? Guess ya did grab a bit too much but I'm sure we could do something creative with them... keheh"

"Razathiel said he might make use of them, but whatever you have in mind they're free to take," Anna laughed lightly. Then she thought about what she might have been allowing. "Nothing uh... Too extreme though, right?" Sudden explosions were a little too much for her. The main reason she was on this team was so she could get ample warning before everything went boom.

"Probably depends on your definition of 'extreme'," Raz muttered.

Anna's answer would have been anything Raz was prone to do, but she didn't say that. "Just don't hurt anyone by accident." And be mindful for the faint of heart.. She thought meekly afterwards.

"Hmm... honestly hadn't thought that far ahead. Keheh... but... if I do come up with something then don't be surprised if the extras suddenly dissapear! Kehe!" Snype replied back.

"Oh, of course not, that would be ludicrous," Razathiel rolled his eyes at the Sableye. "Absolutely no reason to think ahead when explosives are involved."

"Well... guess I could hang onto them if nobody else wants to. Might be useful later on! Kehe!" Snype said.

"Useful..." The sound of that made Anna uneasy. Whatever it will be she was sure she won't like it in the moment. Maybe after it's done them some good, but not then. She regretted opening the fireworks up to everyone, knowing how eccentric they could be sometime. She tried to ignore the thought. "So Snype, we have a new member in our group. Rattles. I hear she likes wise men with experience under their belt."

Snype just stared for a moment. "Hm? Rattles? I think I did see the newbie during the meeting... never did get to say hi yet! Kehe!"

"Oh yeah," The Dreadmage murmured. "I said hello, I think Cal said something about her not saying things? I'm not sure, never really felt like asking..."

As they spoke, Rattles was rolling around the fort as she had been for while after the meeting. Having gained knowledge of emotions beyond the ones Bennett had taught her from the books in the library, she decided she would go around the fort and see if she could identify any of them in the fort's occupants. She was near the lake when she noticed the increasingly large gathering of Pokemon beside it. It seemed like an ideal place to try identifying emotions so she approached the group.

The Ferrothorn rolled up to Raz and the others rapidly, suddenly stopping a few feet away before getting upright on her feelers. She then stared at the group's faces wordlessly, her eyes going from one mon to the other as they had during the meeting.

Annabelle looked over at Rattles when she approached and a smile came on her face. "Look who it is now!" She said gesturing over to the 'mon. "Rattles, this is Razathiel and Snype. And same ways around. Rattles, did you come for the party?"

Snype turned to the newcommer Ferothorn and showed off that big grin of his. "Ahhh so you're the new girl eh? Kehe! Well pleasure to meetcha! Name's Snype!" Snype said happily as he held out his hand... though he quickly realized she didn't exactly have "hands" so to say. Still, was worth seeing how she'd react nonetheless. Raz did nothing but turn to the Ferrothorn and nod once.

Rattles sat down then lifted her feelers, taking a moment to shape the barbs on them before bringing them down to write a simple "No." on the ground as an answer to Anna's question. She then turned to Snype and Raz and waved at them in greeting, not bothering to get up in case she was asked more questions.

"Awww you aren't here to party? kehe! Well its already kind of a party now with the crowd we got I'd say! Kehe!" Snype commented back, taking note of how she communicates. "Why not have a bit of fun while you're here and all?"

"I can't have fun yet." wrote Rattles on a new line, understanding that fun required happiness, something she was currently incapable of. Her gaze then turned from Snype's face to Raz's, trying to figure out what the dreadmage was feeling.

"Hello," Was the Ralts' only response as he momentarily glanced at the imprints on the floor, perplexed.

"Can't have fun?" Anna asked. "Why not try? There are plenty of ways to have fun." She tried to think of her own versions. "Talking to others is fun. And hot tea!" Tea and conversation. Perfect.

"Well... that is one way to have fun... but..." Snype suddenly gave a mischivious grin. "You don't REALLY know the true meaning of fun till you hang out with me! Kehe! Who else to know all about having fun than the king of thieves?"

"The king of fun might have a shot," Raz said dryly.

Rattles was silent for a moment, her segments rotating slowly for a bit. She then scratched out what she'd written before with a slide of her heavy feelers and moved to Snype's side, proceeding to write, "Where do I find either hot T or the king of fun afterwards?"

"Well, the queen of fun is right here," Kaveri piped up from behind Rattles. She'd seen the Ferrothorn pounding on the ground and had approached out of curiosity, only to see that it seemed to be writing. The Floatzel squinted at the writing for a moment, staring at one part in particular, before leaning down and adding an "e" and "a" after the "T".

Snype turned to Kaveri and quickly patted her on the back. "The Queen indeed! Keheh!" Snype said happily.

"Hey there," Guardia greeted from behind the gathered group. "Everything set up? Most of the refugees and townsfolk are already gathered for the activities."

"Yes they are, Guardia!" Anna stated proudly to the Zangoose. "We're just waiting to start. Does everyone look excited?"

"Well," Guardia scratched the back of her head as she contemplated Anna's question. "They were a bit nervous at first, but I think after they began to get what was going on, they calmed down. I think the tension about everything just had them on edge in the beginning."

"Our fireworks--" Anna stopped herself and smiled at her mistake, "Razathiel's show should take their minds off of things. And a full stomach wouldn't hurt either," she said with a slight giggle.

"Agreed," Guardia said with a nod and a smile. "Thomas was in the crowd trying to lighten the mood. I think I spotted James in there somewhere too. Apparently he's curious... not sure I saw Abel in there," She added with a shrug. "But whenever you guys are ready, feel free to kick things off."

"I'll be sure to," Raz murmured, inspecting the food laid out on one table and nabbing a bit of popcorn. "The general populace shouldn't really be on edge, and I have been informed that the whole fort knows about this. There shouldn't be a problem- I'll try to keep most of the villainy out of it, though I am quite impeccably evil so do try to understand if it appears perhaps a tad malevolent."

"Then I guess we can get this started?" Guardia asked Raz. "I could take everyone to the gathering areas so you can get going."

"Certainly!" The wizard replied, turning and beginning to hop off. "Everyone feel free to take a seat and some food, I'll start the show in just a few moments."

"Sweet! Kehe! Dibs on the middle furthest ones! It's always a better view if you aren't too far away." He awkwardly glanced at Guardia, remembering what happened a bit earlier. It seemed to be the theme between them as of late.

---

Guardia gathered around with many of the refugees and townsfolk of Fort Ferrol. There was murmuring and chattering among them as they indulged in the food and drinks of the party. Many were still on edge, but the Zangoose was relatively happy to see that quite a few were getting into the spirit of things and actually settling in. It was nice to break away from the war and all of the fighting to actually do something that didn't involve military planning, or arguing, or fighting. She hoped that the rest of the refugees would soon adapt and get into the mood once the show started.

"Hello!" Announced Raz's voice, psychically amplified so that it carried across the lakeside of the fort. The wizard was levitating back and forth across the surface of the water, admiring the crowd that had amassed. "Wonderful to see so many people have turned up to bask in the glory of my unholy power! Or just grab free food, I suppose - whatever your incentive, I bid you welcome to this evening in which I will create a grand variety of colourful explosions in the air above us. Unfortunately they will be of little consequence, as no people or buildings have volunteered for demolition on this occasion. However, the night sky is a terrific backdrop, so it isn't quite so hard to imagine glorious, large-scale technicolour destruction! The show begins in but a moment, so do prepare yourselves; grab some food, grab a seat- although you'll only need the edge," Razathiel paused to chuckle and shake his head, quietly cursing at himself before finishing. "And train your eyes upwards to witness the spectacle!"

The gathered crowd chirped and murmured in excitement. Many of the eyes of the group had now turned toward the direction to which Raz gestured, eagerly awaiting the commencement of the show. As a few notes began to fade in from the assortment of instruments off to the side of the show, the quiet hissing of lit fuses lay hidden beneath. As the volume and tempo of Razathiel's orchestra began to rise, the wizard took a deep breath and readied his staff. He spoke, his voice echoing with psychic energy.

"Let the show commence!" Raz announced, thrusting his staff upwards and expelling from it a gout of searing flame. Out from behind the cover of the cloak of flame whizzed a rocket, and another, and another. The flying objects screeched their way up towards the clouds before ultimately shattering, bathing the show's audience in the light of the technicolour explosions. The crowd released a holler of 'oohs' and 'aahs' at the sight. Many were quite impressed. Others were taken aback. Aside from 'mon attacks, they had never seen a spectacle quite like this. Even Guardia was quite impressed with the fireworks displays.

"Quite a display he's putting on!" Thomas commented in surprise.

The extravaganza of light and sound continued long into the evening. The refreshments went down well, the sound of Raz's one-'mon orchestra wafted across the lakeside and the brilliant sparkle of fireworks bathed the water below in shimmering refracted light. For the moment, at least, everyone's woes could be forgotten.

 

[SV]

Welcome to Beatruce

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tRVzMIpwzj4​

The light of the Network Point shined brightly, with Guardia having a chance to blink only once, before she was in a pleasantly familiar setting, one which she had not been to in a while. The most prominent sight they were greeted by was a vast, wide river that seemed to extend far south. All around it, there was an enormous riverfront city. Buildings were stacked and condensed by each other on the riverfront, extending seemingly as long as the river went. The river was separated at one point by a smaller patch of land, with buildings hovering it as well. On one side was an endless stream of residencies, in the middle, a few larger buildings and sights, and on the other side, surrounded by more residencies, was an enormous dome. The buildings that made up the city were so condensed and stacked together that it almost appeared as if they were floating on the water below. That was how Surina, capital of Beatruce, had gotten its nickname. The Floating City.

It was a gem, and a marvel to behold. Surina was unlike the previous cities Guardia had been in. With Tollen, Argime was almost like a high-class work of art in some areas, but it also had a divided country between those who could afford to live there, and those that couldn't. Reverence and all of the other cities were divided under the deep caverns of Anatellia between the sects scrapping for control of one another. But Beatruce, and Surina, were different. It was a cultural wonder, a hub of innovation. Besides Karn, they have had a fairly open relationship with almost every nation. The Beatrucians had long adapted a reputation as an endurable nation, one that has experienced the worst of life in their times through disease, famine, plagues, flooding, as well as the very best in prosperity, fortune, and happiness. They found a balance within themselves and without, and formed their country accordingly. If one thing could be said with certainty about Beatruce, it was that they were beyond anything else, a country of fairness. The rich worked side by side with the poor along the citybanks, trading, selling, doing business, and bartering. They were all in a mixed bag. And if Guardia knew anything, it was that the Beatrucians would always adhere by their most sacred principle: an eye for an eye, a hand for a hand, an equivalent exchange. It was how the Gold Tribe came to be in Beatruce. Guardia agreed that they would help protect the people of Beatruce, and the Senate agreed to grant the Gold Tribe a base of operations, which grew quickly and spread rapidly. The same could have been said for other organizations, including the thieves and the Seekers while they were there. Indeed, of all the nations that Guardia had visited, Beatruce was always her favorite. It felt the most like home.

She glanced over to Abel who appeared beside her. He silently examined the riverbanks of Surina, trying to tell what being home meant to him. She cursed her luck for not being able to read 'mon better, but in fairness, she had always thought Abel was a tough 'mon to read. She did think that it must have been nice to finally be back home, seeing as he had not been back in a few months now.

The group were surrounded by a group of Pokémon the moment they set foot in glorious Surina. They didn't seem armed or dangerous like the group that greeted them in Anatellia, but they definitely were soldiers, and they appeared ready for combat if the situation entailed. Beatrucians seemed always to be prepared, even if they had no intent to fight. It was one of the advantages of being there. Guardia could only imagine how the entire nation was facing the culture shock of fighting such a difficult opponent like a plague, and being on the losing end thus far.

"State your name and your business, if you will, travelers," A Crawdaunt soldier in front asked. His garb, as well as the others, seemed different than other nations. Tollen's 'mon were generally full clothed. Anatellians relied on clothing only for warmth. The Beatrucians seemed to be most like the Valkarians in that they wore little clothing, save for an armband or neckband that seemingly all Beatrucians wore. Even Abel had one for his Gold Tribe emblem.

Abel stepped forward toward the soldiers. "Abel 'Atrox' Onderon, Kurasee District, Second-in-Command, Beatrucian Gold Tribe," He stated to the soldier. "Accompanied by the group of Valkarians we messaged about."

The Crawdaunt nodded respectfully, then lifted up his claw. He lifted his enclosed claw to his forehead, and then to his chest, the customary greeting of Beatrucians. "Atrox, forever endure. Welcome home."

"Forever endure," Abel stated back as he repeated the motion to the Crawdaunt.

The Crawdaunt looked toward the rest of the group. "Welcome, Valkarians. You're expected. Forever endure," He greeted with the same motion again as he did with Abel, first lifiting his enclosed fist to his temple, and then to his chest. The rest of the soldiers followed suit, greeting the Valkarians respectfully. "Welcome to Surina."

Snype returned the same motion. He was familiar with the gesture having spent some time in Beatruce in the past. Able would do the same. "Feeling Nostaglic over there eh Able?" Snype said. The Ninjask gave off a small chirp in response.

"Course! Haven't gotten to do that in a long time! We do that motion whenever we finished one of our deliveries in Beatruce!" She explained.

"Good to be back," Guardia replied as she too greeted the same way. She had gotten used to doing after all the trips she had taken to Beatruce to set up the Gold Tribe here. "How is everything?" She asked curiously.

Cal offered the same salute as the others, but kept quiet.

"An answer better asked to the Overseer, I'd say. He's in charge," The Crawdaunt guard stated. "The Senate isn't in session, but he is in town. He's expecting you in Surina's Dome, across the river. We'll arrange transport for you."

Guardia nodded in reply, with the information flowing quickly back to her. She had made sure to give a rundown of all Beatrucian matters, with the help of Abel, to the rest of the group. There were fifteen different districts in Beatruce, each controlled by one Senator. The Senators control a particular area of the country and rule it. There is typically one major city within each district that is the capital of that district. The Senators together comprise the Senate, who is led by one of the Senators elected by the remaining 14. That Senator is called the Overseer. The current Overseer, as Guardia had come to know in her time here, is Julian Oriah. He was an agreeable 'mon, at least Guardia thought. Guardia didn't find too much alarming about him, but also nothing particularly noteworthy that she could point to. It was a nice way of saying that he was a fairly dull 'mon, as far as she was concerned, perferring to deal more with calculations and numbers than other 'mon. But he was without a doubt fair. She expected they could get a decent deal with him.

Larger water 'mon soon came flowing to the side of the river, a sort of taxi system using in Beatruce to travel between the different sections of Surina. Guardia watched around as hundreds of other 'mon also floated from one side of the river to the other. Some of them appeared to be on business, others for leisure. The flow of commerce and Pokemon into Surina was a large as ever. Guardia could hardly fathom how the Beatrucians managed to keep things so steady here when the rest of their country is reportedly in such terrible shape. Was it really as bad as reported? She did notice that there was less traffic around. But was that really any indictation of the condition of the country?

---

Surina's Dome was a marvel to behold. Decorated from top to bottom with various statutes symbols, it stood out as the most impressive sight in Surina. It was crafted long ago in Surina's history, back when the nation was ruled by a tyrant. He sought to make the building a palace for himself and no others, and so it was for the duration of his reign. When he was finally overthrown at the end of his life, the Beatrucian people converted it to a place of worship, before they established their democracy. After, once democracy had set in, the Dome became the gathering place for all dignitaries in Beatruce. The Senate was held here, as were mitigations between 'mon in court. To Beatruce, it was the symbol of their laws. Guardia proceeded inside, escorted by the Crawdaunt and his fellow soldiers. The inside was just as impressive as the outside, with various illustrations scattered across the walls. The Beatrucians were known to appreciate the highest qualities of 'mon, even if they weren't from their own country. Guardia noticed some of the marble statutes around very closely resembled Tollen's. She wouldn't be very surprised if they were actually from there to begin with.

They were taken from the center, large room, up a winding staircase that traveled along the outside of the large dome. Various 'mon rushed passed them, most seeming as though they were politicians or aids of some sort. They occasionally gave looks to some members of the group, but didn't really acknowledge them with much words. They seemed more or less distracted. The staircase seemed to stop in every other floor, with another one going adjacent to it on the other side. They were led approximately halfway up the Dome, before the floor they were meant to go to had arrived.

The Crawdaunt stopped at the floor and opened the large, wooden doors. The room was simple, a large ovular table with various materials and papers upon it. A few candles burned in the corners, as well as one large one in the center. There were no windows in the room, and three Pokemon were inside. Two Mightyenas guarded the entrance, and their eyes darted in unison toward the opening doors fiercely, before they relaxed. The last 'mon was a Tangrowth who was standing beside the table. Guardia met this 'mon before, and knew him as Julian Oriah, the Overseer of Beatruce.

"Overseer, here are the Valkarians," He stated to the Tangrowth, as he greeted him with the same Beatrucian sign to the head and then to the heart. The Tangrowth offered the same quick response to him, and then to the rest of the group.

"Thank you, leave," He stated rather bluntly. Guardia turned to the Crawdaunt and his soldiers, and tried to hold back a smirk. The Tangrowth had always been like this in her experience. Practical, to the point, but also a bit awkward and straight forward. He didn't hide behind rosy words. She wasn't sure he had any real friends, but she also felt he didn't really care for any. "Join me at the table, if you will. We have a few things to discuss."

Snype and Able moved over to their seats, sitting down and just looking over to the Tangrowth. In truth, Snype never did make any interaction with the Overseer while expanding so his thoughts on the thieves' pressence here was unknown to him.

Cal frowned at the table. He was sure they had a chair around the table that would fit him, but after his last attendance of a big important meeting he still wasn't really comfortable with the thought of trying. He simply picked an empty spot and stood next to the table. The thought of finally entering a land where they were surrounded by allies instead of enemies or at-best-suspicious and neutral 'mon. It still felt weird to try looking official, but he had give his new responsibilities due consideration.

The Tangrowth quickly fumbled through some papers in front of him and pulled out one of them. He held at the group, and passed it around. "This is a parchment with the signatures of the other fourteen Senators signifying my authority to speak on their behalf. Senate is not in session so they could not be here today, and I prefer speaking to you alone now so that we can minimize time. But know that I speak for the entire council. Atrox, please confirm the signatures, if you will," He ordered Abel. The Medicham walked over to the paper as it was passed to him and gave the Tangrowth a nod. "Good. Now..." The Tangrowth's eyes traveled across the group. "I'm fairly certain I know why you're here, but I prefer to hear it from the Ponyta's mouth. What do you want from us?"

Guardia cleared her throat and spoke up. "Overseer," She began, as his eyes trailed to hers. "As you know, Valkaria's in bad shape right now. Darkrai is tearing it apart. We've been traveling the past few months to different places to ask for help. And that's also why we came to you. We know Darkrai's reached you here now, and you must know by now there's no way any of us can fight him on our own. We need your help. We need the Beatrucian army."

"And we've heard about the plague." Cal added in. "It's extremely regrettable we couldn't get here sooner, but now that we are we'd like to do everything we can to help find a cure. We already have a few ideas that might help make progress as well."

"Do you?" The Tangrowth asked the green Dragonite. "I'd definitely want to hear them," He replied with a nod. "I too have heard about your situation. The Senate of Beatruce and its people highly respect our alliance with Valkaria. Our sympathies are with your country in its current state. In fact, had it not been for the plague, we would have assisted you in your efforts. So it seems we both want the help of the other. I will strike a deal with you now, a fair one. If you can stop the plague in my country, Beatruce's army is yours. Is that agreeable?" The Tangrowth asked the group.

"Seems like a fair one to me," Guardia nodded. "But... how extensive is it?" She asked a bit worriedly. She hoped it wasn't too bad as to keep them here for a very long time trying to save the country.

The Tangrowth replied by moving some of the papers around to reveal a map with drawn lines of it. It was a map of Beatruce, with a bright red line striking through half of the country. He pointed at it with one of his tentacles. "Everything north of this line is in our 'quarantined zone'," Julian explained. "We've spent countless weeks trying to find a way to secure the area. We've lost hundreds upon hundreds of soldiers trying to save lives, only to have many of those turn on us barbarically. We've even lost many from outside help. Seekers, while they were here, Brigands and thieves who actually helped, and the Gold Tribe. At this point, we are merely holding that line, and making sure the plague won't cross it. We can't push forward into it anymore. We can only hold it back. As far as we're concerned, practically every ally that is north of this line is dead."

Abel stepped forward. "But what about the Gold Tribe?" He asked the Overseer. "Last I heard when I was in Tollen, the Beatrucian Gold Tribe was in the Great Vantage. That's north of the line. How are they doing?" He pressed the Tangrowth.

The Tangrowth silently gazed at Abel. "... as far as we're concerned, practically every ally that is north of this line is dead," The Tangrowth repeated. Abel held an intense, long, silent gaze with the Tangrowth, before he shut his eyes and slumped into his chair. Guardia looked at the Medicham as he sat with his eyes closed, and frowned.

Snype rubbed his arm a bit nervously. He knew some of his thieves were in the quarantined zone, likely helping those who needed it.

Cal grimaced at the sight of Abel's cool exterior dropping. "That may end up being true for those being infected in the end Overseer...But I think we can save a lot of them, and we'll know one way or the other soon enough. It's likely we'll have to bore right through the heart of the quarantine zone."

"Indeed you will," The Overseer nodded. "We had lost contact with much of the quarantine zone but..." The Tangrowth once more fumbled through some papers. "Before areas went dark, we've received two messages. The first was from Seeker and other allied forces in Mercurion before they all left Beatruce. They had apparently identified the perpetrator of the plague, the one who created it. I believe that information has been passed onto you already. He is known as Bastille, the Priest. But there is also two other pieces of info we recently received about him. The first, is that he is still in Mercurion, perhaps even now. Although reports are suggesting he may be moving on soon. The second, is that the plague comes from his own power. If Bastille were to die, then the plague would die with him. All those who have been turned cannot be unturned, but the fog will vanish, and the disease will stop to spread. That was the first message we received. The second one came to us from the Great Vantage, from the Beatrucian Gold Tribe."

Abel opened his eyes and looked up at the Tangrowth. "We couldn't quite understand what they were referring to in the message," Julian explained. "But the Gold Tribe sent one final message before the area went dark. That they found something."

"Found something? Found what?" Guardia asked the Overseer.

"They said that they found 'hope'."

"...That wouldn't happen to be Cresselia's spirit would it?" Snype explained. "A while ago, we learned that it was being kept at within the Great Vantage... is that releated by chance? We recieved a message from the very same place as well."

Julian glanced at the Sableye. "I heard that you were going after Cresselia from Atrox, but I don't really know much about the legendary beyond that," He replied. "You're going to have to find that out yourself by going there. Which brings up one problem with this entire situation," The Tangrowth explained. "Both areas, Mercurion and the Great Vantage, are in the plague. Both had Network Points at their locations, but as far as we know, the Network Psychics that are there are likely dead. We have maybe enough power on this end to give your group one jump into the quarantine zone, but we won't be able to jump you back. Nor will we be able to split up your ports into two. So you'll have to choose which one of these areas you want to go to first. And it could be as long as a five-day walk to the other city. The problem I see is, going to one area might alter the situation in the other. If you went to The Great Vantage first, for example, there's reports that Bastille is on the move soon, so he might not be in Mercurion. On the other hand, pick to go after Bastille first, and there's no telling whether whatever this 'hope' is will still be in the Great Vantage."

"The piece of Cresselia is vital to our entire mission..." Cal muttered to himself. "But the priest going into hiding is a serious concern too, we can't let him continue to spread this plague. That jerk sure picked an ironic title."

"There aren't any other network points you could warp another group too?" Snype asked.

"Well, we COULD warp one group to Agobalt city to the west of the Great Vantage, It'll be a two-day walk from there to the Great Vantage, though." Julian replied.

Snype scratched his chin. "Hrm... if only there were a faster way to travel there... gah I wish I finished those tunnels here..." Snype muttered to himself.

"OR," Anna interjected like a boss. "I could boost the power of the the Network points. I know a thing or two about the Networks, so give me some time to do a tweak or two and we'll have both up and running so we don't have to make tough decisions, kay?" Hell yeah.

"Kehe, Anna you magnificent son of a *****." Snype praised with a cheery laugh.

"Wait," Razathiel whispered to the Sableye, confused. "Anna is a guy? And also Guardia's kid?"

"That's great Anna!" Guardia exclaimed happily. "That'll make things easier."

"Although that will mean having to split us up," Thomas commented. Are we sure we want to do that?"

"Hey it worked out pretty damn well back in Tollen right?"

"I suppose that's true..." Thomas murmured.

"If we did split up, who would like to go where?" Guardia asked.

"Taking note of every opinion I've ever given, I'll let you figure it out," The Dreadmage muttered.

"So Raz is going to go kill the Bastille." Cal threw in. "I believe if we're splitting up Snype and I should go through different points, divide up the megastones in case they're needed."

"What about me?" James asked, particularly toward Snype and Cal.

Cal thought for a moment, scuffing his foot on the floor while he pondered. "I'm not the one paying you, so ultimately it's up to Snype. But I think you should help go after the piece of Cresselia, you'd make a great bodyguard for them. You don't have any personal loyalties here like the rest of us, you're not likely to get distracted from protecting the target if one of us is in danger, which makes them that much safer. That also means there would indirectly be a lot less pressure on the team going aftter the Bastille, give us some breathing room to make sure that team has a lot of fighting potential...And I don't like the thought that another agent might try to outbid us, to be frank. I've been practicing, but I'd still really rather not fight you for real if I can avoid it."

James nodded. "I can do that," He turned to Snype. "Is that cool with you?"

"Aye. I'm fine with that. Cresselia is crucial to the rest of our mission and all. Kehe. Good thing I sent ya to do a bit of scouting beforehand eh? Ought to give everyone an even edge." Snype said with a confident grin. "How bout ya tell everyone some of the info ya found out?"

James put a hand to his chin and looked up into the sky to recall. "I checked out that place, the Great Vantage. At least the portion of it. It's huge. It's an enormous canyon that extends for miles. You could get lost in it. The Beatrucians built a couple dozen forts and towers within the canyon all around. From what I understand, every single one of them has been overrun by either the plague, or by the demons of the plague. All but one: the Great Vantage. It's basically a large town-slash-fort built right in the middle of the canyon."

"And there are Pokémon still there?" Abel asked the Blaziken.

James nodded. "Yeah, but they're in pretty bad shape. Didn't see any of you Gold Tribers, though. I think if any of them are alive, they're out protectin' 'mon around. There were a few soldiers, though, guarding. I asked them what they were guarding against. One of them thought he'd be a clever sh*t and told me they were guarding against hell. Another explained more clearly that the plagued ones try to attack at them daily. They say the plague comes in and sweeps through the towns as well, and every time it does more and more turn. I'm guessing from what I saw, they won't be around for much longer. Which is not good for Surina the capital. Cause from what I understand, if they lose the Great Vantage, that's the last major block between the plagued zone and here."

"Keheh, well there ya go! I personally want to go after the Priest. I think I owe it to the thieves that sacrificed theirselves to finish the job."

"I'm going to go after the Priest with you, then," Abel stated firmly.

"In that case, I will go with James to the Great Vantage," Thomas declared.

Guardia nodded and stepped forward. "I'll go there too," Guardia said to Thomas.

"I'll go to the Great Vantage too." Callimer joined in. "Flyers are well suited to canyons anyways right? I could always go fairly high up and see if I can spot anything James missed. And if we ever run into a gap or a roadblock we can't just jump or climb over, I can ferry us across. Plus... I guess there's no way to be sure, but if anybody DOES have any resistance to this plague, it's probably Snype and I. So it's probably best to have one of us on each team, we might be able to go into extra corrupted places that aren't safe for the rest of you." Despite the logic of what he said Cal still felt a chill run the length of his spine at the thought of going into plague-infested places.

"Right. Able will stick with me. I'm sure she's got the same reasons as I do after all." Snype explained. The Ninjask nodded.

"I'd go with the boss either way! I gotta see if my other friends are alright... we used to be a freelance delivery service around these parts before I formed the Ninjask network. Some of the Ninjask who stayed behind still do so I just want to make sure..." Able explained.

There was a loud crashing sound as a part of the stone floor was broken due to Rattles' attempt to communicate. "Where should I go?" was messily etched deep into a small portion of it.

"R-rattles!" Thomas cried as she cut into the stone floor in front of the Overseer. "You can't damage property like that!"

The Tangrowth merely held up a tentacle and shook his head. "Do not worry, we have Golem builders that can tidy it up in a hurry."

"Oh... very well then," Thomas murmured. He cleared his throat. "I am not sure, but perhaps given her protective nature, you can join us in securing this 'Lia' in the Great Vantage?"

Rattles watched Thomas for a few seconds before nodding.

 

[Megaman765]

Mercurion-Snype, Raz, Able, Abel

https://vignette1.wikia.nocookie.net/evenfall/images/7/7c/Erock.jpg/revision/latest?cb=20140911222551

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fe9mmOSlFJE

Mercurion had seen better days. In its prime, it was one of the premier cities in Beatruce to visit. It had scores of historic records within it, home to some of the greatest museums in the world. It was also a defensive marvel. Being the city closest to the borders with Karn, it had its share of struggles with the overpowering nation, and was relatively successful in repelling the Karnians, save for a few times. The walls which surrounded the city broke apart lesser 'mon like toothpicks, and the high watchtowers destroyed aerial assaults with ease, even occasional Karnian armies had to retreat from unbelievably unacceptable casualties.

But the walls of Mercurion couldn't stop the plague. The rumors go that a Drapion one day showed up at the gates of Mercurion with a staff in one arm and the command of a small elite force, and just waited. In the span of a few months, he worked his plague within the city, and watched itself tear itself apart from the inside. Then, as the city was brought to its knees, the Drapion walked in with his elite force and took control. The Drapion was known as Bastille, the Priest. He was feared beyond belief by the citizens still residing inside Mercurion, as the 'mon inflicted his plague daily upon the 'mon of the city, slowly turning the thousands within into an army. The Priest was clearly building up for something huge. A move that would likely be the end of Beatruce if left unchecked.

"... Mercurion..." Abel murmured under his breath as the group appeared out of the battered Network Machine a kilometer outisde of the city walls. The machine must have been abandoned there after it ceased to be useful. The Medicham stared at the worn city with a bit of disbelief on his face. He had visited the place many times in his life. Never had it looked like this.

"Well first things first. We need a lead on where to start looking. And on top of that, we gotta make sure we don't get infected ourselves... I won't send Able out blindly so lets stead carefully through here..." Snype said.

"If that Priest favors himself a king in Mercurion, he's probably staying in the Citadel in the center. It the tallest building there," Abel pointed. "But I'm guessing judging by the fog, his plague is in that city, and an army of plagued 'mon too. We need to be careful not to get affected by it. Ideas?"

"Well... if theres anyone we could get info from that'd be a start. We can't exactly storm headlong into a plague without better protection. Beatruce was able to contain the plague here so they gotta have some way to stay protected." Snype said.

"I did check with a few of my contacts in Surina about the quarantine," Abel commented. "They set up barricades with gusts shooting back the plague at the points, and keeping it from spreading. They built high walls to keep it from permeating, but it eventually seeps through if left uncheck. The problem is that it goes on too continuously to be kept out for long. As for here..." Abel shrugged. "Most of the Gold Tribe went to the Great Vantage to keep that area in check. I don't know who's still here that can help us. What I DO know is that those towers will spot us coming if we try anything during the daytime."

"Keheh, well I always did work better at night time... I know I had some of my own thieves hanging around these parts as well. They can give a good layout of the area before we make our move." Snype said.

"You have thieves here?" Abel questioned. "Well... you'd better hope they're alive. Send them a message, and we'll wait out until nightfall before we decide how to do this, since we'll likely have different methods we'd want to try out," Abel commented as he quickly shot a glance to Raz.

"Got it. Able ya know what to do!" Snype called out. The Ninjask chirped out cheerfully.

"Don't sit around too long! I'll be back before you know it!" Able said. She already knew where the theives were hanging out at. She just hoped they were alive. Able took off into the air and flew off.

"Evil grief, you non-wizard folk really are quite clueless about the occult, aren't you?" Razathiel hummed quietly. "Might have to get out a book and give you lot a bloody schooling, bless my poor soul..."

"About what, exactly?" Abel asked the Ralts coldly.

"The occult, you silly sausage," Raz chided the Medicham.

"... I don't know what you're saying exactly, nor do I really care, but I gave her the bracelet Alex had, so she should be fine against the plague, if that's what you're concerned about," Abel commented. "Now all we have to do is wait."

---

Able flew through the streets hoping to at least find some trace of the thieves along the way... of course, that was wishful thinking in this part of town. The entire city was practically empty or the Pokemon who still lingered were hiding in their homes to hide from the plague. It wouldn't be any smarter to just run out and risk getting infected. She really couldn't blame them. She also noticed a suspicious looking fog traveling through the town. "Psh... I dunno if that's related to the plague or not but I'm not gonna take my chances... the thieves can't be too far off..." Able thought to herself. After flying a little deeper through the city, she'd make a turn through a small allyway. She remembered Snype had a little hangout in this part of town to get away from trouble or just recruit other potential thieves. The Ninjask hesitated a moment. if any thieves were inside then they wouldn't react very kindly to a sudden knock. For all they know, it could be one of the infected mon. So she decided to play it off in a more familiar method. "*ahem... Delivery from the Ninjask Network!" She called out to the door, hoping someone was behind it... though there was no answer from the other side of the door. Able tilted her head. She should have figured. Maybe the thieves were hiding deeper inside or already made an escape. It wouldn't hurt to check... Able decided to throw caution to the wind and attempt opening the door. "C...comon guys its me! Able! Y-you're still in there right?"

The door was unlocked and swung open, revealing the sight inside. The place seemed completely abandoned, maybe for a while now. Tables and chairs were knocked over. Dust and webs were settling in across the corners of the bar. The drinks lay scattered across the floors, and any that were unopened seemed nowhere in sight. There was a stale, musky smell to the door, that which would arise out of neglect. It was clear that nobody had been presently there for quite a while now.

Able sighed and looked around her. "They must have switched locations... I mean... there's a few spots they could have escaped to outside of town but..." Able looked back outside and tried to think of another form of approach. "Where to even begin... I could fly to all of those spots in no time but I can't waste time flying around blindly... maybe there's something inside." Able said as she flew right on in to investigate the bar. Upon closer inspection, it was apparent from some footprints that some 'mon may have been around, though it didn't seem as though any were around at the moment. Scattered dust and footprints showed that signs were there that 'mon had been around, but they didn't seem to stay for long. Beyond that, the look around proved fairly fruitless.

"Footprints..." Able quickly flew closer. A few mon were definitely inside of the bar recently... only for a few moments though. "Gah... Snype always had a better eye for these things! The place back in Gold City had a secret tunnel that lead right outside of the city but I wonder if they made something like that here..." Able moved to the back of the bar to investigate the walls a bit further. In Gold City, the secret entrance was just behind the counter so she hoped that something similar was in this one. As expected, a lever seemed to be positioned secretly in the back of the bar, though dust and webs covered it; it clearly hadn't been used for a while, possibly a few weeks.

If any thieves were hiding out here they'd be moving between these bars to help out others... Still... it didn't hurt to check. Able pulled the level to see if it was at least functioning. Loud creaking and wrenching sounds followed, and a path started to form from the wall behind the bar, as a set of the bottled area passed and revealed a staircase leading down a dark pathway. Able wasn't quite sure where the path lead but Snype did want to try connection all these hidden speakeasys together... and at least this was safer than flying through the streets. The path was dimmly lit up by various candles. It wasn't quite as elaborate as the one in Gold City but it still did the job. Able would eventually reach the other side of the long hallway. Just like before, there was a switch to open up the hidden entrance from the inside. Able cautiously pulled on the level, hoping somebody else would be inside. "Helloooo?"

"What the hell?!" A startled voice yelped from the other side of the bar. It was a Treecko, one who had apparently been resting along one of the chairs. The 'mon fell off his seat at the loud creaking of the hidden doors opening up. He began backing away toward the front entrance, preparing to run off.

Able cursed silently. She was on the verge of giving up hope of finding a thief inside of one of these bars but he honestly didn't expect to find somebody inside! "H-hey! Hold on! " Able shouted out as she quickly flew out and revealed herself. "I didn't mean to spook you like that!"

The Treecko stopped and glanced at the Ninjask. He seemed to examined it closely, as if to see if something was on it. When he didn't appear to spot whatever he was looking for, he sighed deeply. "Arceus, I thought you were one of them. What the hell are you doing sneaking around in there for?! Are you trying to call it over here?! What if it heard?!" The Treecko spat, as he peaked out of the window far out into the city, toward the direction of the fog.

Able just looked at the Treecko completely confused. "It...? You mean the plague? I heard it was kind of bizarre but being able to hear...? Um..." Able just stared at him a bit awkwardly. "You uh... wouldn't happen to know about the thieves would you?"

"What?" The Treecko asked confusedly as he turned over from the window to the Ninjask. "Thieves? They're still around? I thought they all jumped ship when the Priest took control. Or at least went into hiding. What the hell are you looking for them anyway? Are you lookin' for more trouble? Why don't you just lay low so the rest of us don't friggen die!"

It'd make perfect sense for the thieves to jump ship. Snype never did want to force his men to do something they weren't comfortable with... but she did wonder where else they could be hiding. "Shh! How bout you stop being so loud mister "What if it heard?!" I'm trying to investigate this plague... I was hoping one of the thieves would have a good layout of the town..."

"Gack!" The Treecko covered his mouth, and looked out the window again nervously. He glanced around before sighing deeply. "Damn it, gettin' me all riled up..." He grumbled. "Eh? Investigate?" The 'mon repeated, before he opened his eyes a bit wider. "Oooh, you must be an out-of-towner... word of advice: Get out while you can. No one's staying around here by choice. And no one's gonna be around much longer. Once it gets you, that's it."

"I understand... we looked into it before. I'm Able, a lead messanger of the thieves. I used to hang around here along time ago actually. I'm here with Snype and some folks in the Gold Tribe. Its a long story but our job is to take down the source. I was hoping to get a good layout of the area to make a plan... or get information." Able explained. "...If it makes you feel safer, we should move into the secret passage here. Theres no trace of the plague inside here."

"Thieves and Gold Tribe...?" The Treecko repeated with a bit of surprise. "Didn't think you guys were sti- oh, yeah, OK," The Treecko muttered and followed into the secret passage. "Kinda spooky in here... so uh, are you guys like, doing a rescue operation or something? You say you're gonna take down the source? How many of you are there, then? Fifty? A Hundred? Five Hundred?" The Treecko asked excitedly. Able instead shook his head.

"Well, only five or so of us are in this part of town but I wouldn't underestimate the number. This isn't the first time we've encountered the plague either." Able explained.

"...Five?" The Treecko's expression turned into a deep frown, and his heart sank. He shook his head sadly. "I should have known. We're all going to die here... five won't help us. Not against this. Not against him. You say you ran into the plague before?" He shook his head again. "Not like this." The Treecko looked up at the path back to the bar. "This is the source. This is Bastille. He sees everything in the fog. He hears everything. And when he wants to, he'll take everything and anything in it. No one is safe when the fog is on you. No one endures."

Able perched herself near the Treecko. "Well... were able to push it back anyways... it wasn't this bad in Tollen but we were able to put a stop to it nonetheless. And now we're here to finish the job... one of our members has a strong immunity to the plague so maybe it isn't enitrely hopeless! We just need a good plan and... well, could you tell me more about how this thing works?"

"You ran into the plague outside in other cities, so I'm guessing you know the gist of how it usually works," The Treecko commented. "If you get sucked into the fog, you either die painfully, or you'll turn into one of those... things. The plagued 'mon. Either way, it's a done deal for you. That part, everyone knows. What they don't tell you is that the guy controlling it, the one here in the main building, he can see everything within sight of his fog. And hear too. He knows when 'mon try to sneak into his palace. He knows when anyone moves around if you're close enough to it. That's how the last bit of Gold Tribers died when they tried to take him out. And that's the problem... the problem is that his tower is surrounded by the fog 24/7. If you try getting at him, he'll know you're coming. And he's got an army of those things in between him and you. That's why I thought you brought a few hundred. Cause the only way you get at the Priest is a direct strike, 'sfar as I can see."

"But he'd easily infect us with that cloud though...right? Well there goes sneaking inside..." Able thought for a moment. She could quite think of any clever ways to move through the fog by herself. "...You also said the thieves went into hiding? Were most of them infected too? How'd you find one of our hideouts anyways? Lucky guess or something?"

"Hell, I didn't even know this was a thief hideout until you came out of the wall," The Treecko replied. "I'm just tryin' to stay alive, move around with the fog, try to stay one step ahead of it, watch out for its sweeps... it does that too, sweep through the city, picks off a few dozen of us each time. Maybe the thieves are around. I mean, maybe they're doing the same thing I am, but my guess is they packed up and left a long time ago. But who knows? No idea how to get in contact with them though. Most likely, you make enough noise, they might find you. But so might the plague... so..."

Able nodded. "Right... heh. Guess flying around aimlessly wouldn't be the best idea then huh? Knew that fog was bad news." Able said with a tiny laugh. "Well, if it makes you feel better, you can hang out in here as long as you need to... we have another entrance at the end of the tunnel."

---

Abel had been sitting outside in a thicket approximately a kilometer outside Mercurion's walls. He wanted nothing more than to avoid looking at the city, but his eyes had to be drawn there, looking for weaknesses, trying to see possible ways to go around its towers, and seeing any other advantages he could. But everytime he looked, he could only think back to the last times he was here, with the members of his own tribe. He tried to push back those thoughts for now as he awaited Snype's thief to return from her scouting.

It wouldn't take long for Able to finally return. "Heya!" She said a bit quieter then usual.

"Able! What'd you find ou-" Before Snype finished his sentance, Able placed a claw right over his mouth. "Mmmph!"

"Shh! Keep it down! I'll explain... so this is the basic gist of things..." From there, Able would explain everything that the Treeko had told her, including what she witnessed on the way to speakeasy.

Abel listened intently, examining the fog that had been rolling around the city. He had assumed it was just a regular fog which surrounded Mercurion's main buildings. The area could be prone to them if the season was right. But this seemed to be more than that. "So there's no way of rolling it out without alerting...?" Abel pondered. "It seems drawn to movement and outliers, things out of the ordinary, the way you describe it. I wonder if we can somehow avert it's attention."

"My, oh my," Razathiel murmured, sitting happily on the grass with a smug grin peeking out from under his hood. "The way you lot speak, it's like you've never dealt with sentient fog before. Honestly, any hero worth their snuff should have dealt with hundreds of misty adversaries - to not even have experienced one is comical bordering on ludicrous..."

"The way you speak of it, it's like you have dealt with something like this," Abel commented at the small Ralts. He crossed his arms. "Care to elaborate?"

"Oh, this is just grand," Raz giggled, diving into his Magic Room. "I'll get to assisting your pathetic little hero behind in a moment, I have to write this down. If I weren't such a maniacal villain, I could probably make a living as a writer, you know; who could resist the story of Abel Atrox, proud second-in-command of the Beautrician Gold Tribe, crawling to my help after being bested by fog..."

Abel made no comment other than to continue giving Raz a cold glare as he awaited him to retrieve whatever it was he was searching for.

"You'll have plenty of time to write your story after we get rid of the fog here. Now whatcha got Raz?" Snype said. From the rip in reality returned Raz's upper half, bringing with it his suit of armor in a psychic grip. The wizard plopped the shining plate mail beside him, twirling his staff once in hand before addressing the others.

"Right, so the fog is controlled by the caster - Darkrai's ****wit, in this case - and can pretty much be remotely bent to their will as they please, to a certain extent. Generally a fairly cowardly option, in my opinion," The Dreadmage tapped his staff on the ground and summoned his armour to surround him before continuing. "The problem is that its effects are transmitted fairly easily, so simply covering your mouth won't work because if you even so much as touch the buggering stuff you'll end up with an arse full of deadly poison. Generally these kinds of fogs are fairly easily repelled with psychic blasts, though in this case..." Razathiel paused, pondering to himself for a moment and turning to face Mercurion. "This fog is darker than usual, likely borne of nefarious power this bastard is freeloading from Darkrai; usually these fogs are poisonous and are still bound by the rules of type advantage, but judging by the colour and its origin, I'd say it's entirely possible this fog could well be Dark type. Or perhaps a Poison and Dark fusion, even... If the fog has progressed this far and is controlled as easily as you've said, perhaps simply attacking it will fall into the realms of horrible inefficiency... that's your bloody problem to deal with, I'm set for it because I'm evil and wizardly and all that good stuff. Evil stuff, rather. Maybe you should try asking the fog politely...?"

Abel listened to Raz's explanation to the fog. After he had concluded, he pointed to Snype, who was wearing the golden bracelet. "That bracelet is the second 'mon ticket in. Alex said before it was a big help against the plague. No doubt it can protect against the plague too if its Darkrai's power. And if its poison, Snype should be able to handle it..." The Medicham's voice trailed off as he observed Mercurion, particularly the large stream of fog surrounding the main building. "It might have to be only the two of you, then."

Snype looked down at the bracelet on his arm. "Well... considering I've interacted with Cresselia before, the fog shouldn't get to me that easily. Still doesn't hurt to be careful." Snype said.

Abel nodded, then looked over at the flying Able beside Snype. "In the meantime, maybe you and I can make things easier for them. Make a distraction. Maybe some noise away from there, to attract other enemies. Keep the pressure off... probably a risky ploy, but at this point, they'll need all the pressure off they can get. It's two going in after who knows how many in there."

Raz gave a confident 'pfft'.

"Right..." Snype said as he looked out into the city with a small hint of worry on his face. "So just going to storm through the heart of it all eh? Kehe... pretty bold move... but I feel like we can pull it off." Snype said. Able flew right on over the Medicham.

"Comon you got double the able as your distractions! You two oughta get through just fine! He seems like a pretty fast enough guy anyways!" Able said with a tiny laugh.

"It should be easy enough," Razathiel agreed, facing the city and turning up his nose. "I could, of course, rectify this entire situation myself; your assistance and the minion's accompaniment are merely small conveniences."

"I wouldn't get too overconfident if I were you," Abel snapped coldly. "Remember, this guy was the one who created this entire plague. With the help of Darkrai, sure, but he can the basic formula for it before as well. And he used it not only here in Beatruce, but also in Tollen. I can't stress to you enough how important taking him down is. And remember another thing..." The Medicham continued. "When James was describing the other Agents, he put Bastille on the same level as him. And James has a Mega Stone. So let that sink in. And don't take this bastard lightly. Or I'll never forgive you."

"I know I know! I'm taking this just as seriously as you are! No need to be a sourpuss Abel!" She responded going back to a more calm demeanor. Snype meanwhile did let it all sink in. Bastille could have a Mega stone as well. If only his own stone worked! Worst case scenario, he'd have to force its Power to assist him one way or another... he was sure he'd find a way.

"We'll take him down Abel. I have just as much on the line as everyone else here. If I have to improvise when I get in there I'll figure something out. For now lets stick with the plan we already have."

"You don't nearly have as much on the line as I do," Abel retorted. "This is my home he's destroying. But it doesn't matter. We'll stick to our distracting plan, and you stick to yours. Just remember that just because his fog won't harm you, doesn't mean he won't be able to see you in it. He'll know you're coming. Better be ready."

 

[SV]

Cal, Guardia, Thomas, Rattles, James and Anna - The Great Vantage, Beatruce

​

The Canyons of Beatruce. It was one of the greatest spectacles in the world once. Kilometers upon kilometers of canyons stretched on in every direction in the northern areas of Beatruce. It was a sight that attracted 'mon from all over the world. It's red-orange rock formations seemed as if they were carved with precision just to show of the beauty of the landscape. Despite their magnificence, a foreigner could easily get lost in the deep trenches of the canyons without a proper Beatrucian guide, never to be heard from again. This was why Beatruce established the 12 vantages, points which act as both guides to allies and visitors, and some of the greatest defenses to enemies. In Beatruce's long history, scores of 'mon have tried to claim the advantageous vantages, with few ever having real success. The most successful of which by far was the Great Vantage.

Established almost five centuries ago, the Great Vantage overlooks a crucial point in Beatruce, one of the few paths that could lead directly to three different large cities, including the capital of Surina. It is a fortress unlike many in the world, positioned within one of the narrow points in the canyon which defends the the paths to the three cities. Its beauty masks it vigor, however. A thousand 'mon could try and siege the Great Vantage, and a thousand 'mon would fail. An attack from above was a pointless endeavor, the cold airs above the high-altitude canyon grounds would freeze most aerial assaults, and a direct attack would fall upon the mighty defenders of the vantage. Invaders have tried other tactics too: collapsing the sturdy canyon walls, planting Electrode bombs, flooding. All have failed.

That is, until the plague came. One of the Great Vantage's most sturdiest defenses, it's tightness, narrowness and rigidness proved to be a major flaw as the plague swept in scores of times and picked off defenders by the handful. Every das, the caller of the plague would lessen the guards, and each day after that, the poor victims who turned would attack the fortress. Each day they would fail, but each day they would also get a bit further than before. Now, the Great Vantage stands on its last legs, with only a fraction of its original guard in place, and with plagued 'mon and the plague itself attacking it on a daily basis.

Guardia arrived with the Great Vantage group to this location, and saw the poor condition the fortress and the 'mon were in. The guards appeared worn and tired beyond belief. They had likely lost their ability to take breaks from shifts long ago, and now are forced to stay awake without rest. Citizens and guests that would visit the once grounded Vantage were long gone. The buildings and defenses looked weak and unstable, with Guardia betting that many would collapse quite soon. Indeed, it seemed as if one more fatal attack on the fort may be the end of it. The Zangoose Gold Tribe leader wasn't planning on letting that happen.

As the group appeared within the middle of the fort, one of the other things she noticed was that there were no Network Psychics around the Network machine. They had probably succumb to the plague a while ago, which is why the connection was cut off. She observed the guards, some of which turned to the group in surprise. They obviously weren't expecting anyone to come out of there. A group of soldiers, led by an Umbreon, ran forward to greet them.

"State your busine-" The Umbreon cut himself off when he saw the shining Gold Tribe symbols on both Guardia and Callimer. "... it can't be... Gold Tribe members? I don't recognize any of you though," He turned to the other soldiers behind him.

"Me neither!" A Krabby soldier chirped nervously. "They could be in disguise!"

"How did they pass through without Network Psychics?" A Bayleef soldier, with a damaged front foot asked.

"Woah, woah, we're allies!" Guardia motioned to calm the group. "And we're Gold Tribe. Valkarian."

"Valkarian?" The Krabby repeated. Something seemed to click within him. "Zangoose! You're Guardia!" He exclaimed as the Zangoose nodded. He then turned to the giant green Dragonite. "And you must be Emerald Sentinel!" The soldiers quickly tapped at their heads and chest in the traditional Beatrucian greeting respectfully, and with much relief.

Callimer mimicked the greeting and tipped his head. "Yes, we are, and we're here to help. We'll do what we can here, and we have another group going after what we believe is the source of the plague right now. If we're lucky, the spread of corruption may be over soon, though we'll have to deal with those already turned regardless."

"Finally some reinforcements!" Another soldier, a Growlithe with a bloody eye, stated wearily, but happily.

"That'll be a huge help," The Umbreon nodded respectfully. "We've been trying to find a way at Bastille for weeks now, but he's holed up too far away and we can't make the trips to Mercurion without running into the plague. But, why did you come specifically here? Just to help?"

The Dragonite raised an eyebrow at Guardia, wondering if he should be speaking on Cresselia before they knew more.

Recognizing his glance, Guardia spoke up. "We... heard the Gold Tribe was here as well," She explained. "We were hoping they were, at least."

The Umbreon in charge shook his head and frowned. "They haven't been here for a few weeks now, if there are any left. Last one we saw come was Mindbreaker a few weeks ago... she didn't make it. They were out in the plagued zones in the north, she came back alone apparently on orders from the leader, to send a transmission to Surina," The Umbreon looked back at the Network Machine right behind them, and paused. "She died as she was sending it... we gave her a proper burial."

Cal's antennae drooped at the news. "That's really a shame to hear...were you able to find out what any of the message was?"

The Umbreon nodded. "I heard her say it. 'We found hope,' she said."

Antennae were perked right back up at that news. "She said that?! We've got to track the rest of her group!" Cal called out before he was able to calm himself down. "That's great news...I only hope some of the others have survived."

The soldiers glanced curiously at Cal, and then at Guardia who had a similar reaction, as a large, hopeful grin appeared on her face. "What's this about, exactly?" The Umbreon asked.

"Something that'll help Beatruce. And Valkaria, and every other 'mon fighting against Darkrai," Guardia explained.

"R-right," The Umbreon stammered, feeling at that moment a bit nervous at the monumental status of the information. "They went to the northern vantage down that road," He pointed down the path on the left which led on through the canyon. "It's deep in the contagion, taken by those monsters a while ago. Seemed like a suicide mission to go off there, but they heard that there were still a lot of citizens that were surviving the plague up there for some reason. I guess they wanted to go protect them and bring them back here. And you know how 'Prime' gets when he sets his mind on something. There's no turning him away."

Guardia shook her head and grinned slightly. "That I do," She confirmed.

"Problem is, they haven't been back since, and besides Mindbreaker, we haven't seen or heard from them," The Umbreon explained. "I don't know if they're even alive anymore. And to be honest, I'm not sure if you go after them now, you'll make it out either."

Cal squared his shoulders and spread his wings. "Then we know where we have to go." He craned his head towards the Blaziken trailing them. "James, do you know the way?"

"I haven't been to that vantage in a while," James shrugged. "But I think I remember."

"You can't be serious!" The Krabby soldier yelped. "You'll all die out there!"

"We've survived worse already." Cal stated grimly. "And we don't really have any choice."

"Will this thing really win the war?" The Umbreon asked.

"It'll greatly increase our chances," Thomas answered with a nod. "It'll be huge for our side. It is why we have to go. And you can rest assured that we will return."

"I seriously hope so," The soldier sighed. "I don't wanna have to dig two Gold Tribe leaders' graves when you don't come back."

A dark chuckle rumbled deep in the Emerald Sentinel's belly and he turned towards their goal. "Don't worry, if Darkrai didn't finish me off, none of his cronies will either. Are you guys ready?" He threw over his shoulder. "If we're going to go, we should do it now before any of the corrupted 'mon attack and we get bogged down defending the place. If we go now we can clear everything out along the way so that no attacks come while we're gone, hopefully. At the very least any attacks that may happen will be all the weaker for our progress."

"Right, agreed," Guardia commented, as she turned to James. "Lead the way, then."

James nodded and proceeded across the partially vacant base. The remaining worn soldiers who patrolled across the borders looked at the group with curiosity. They whispered among each other as the group passed them. Guardia took note of their faces, their bodies. They were in bad shape. She knew that even if they wouldn't say it out loud, their path through here, and the success of the other group in bringing down Bastille would be crucial. If they didn't succeed, then things would turn out disastrous for Beatruce.

They reached the front gates of the fortress, to one of the three paths. The front guards swiftly opened the door as the Umbreon soldier instructed them. "Careful," The Umbreon cautioned. "If you run into the plagued, kill them while you can, they're long gone to be saved now. If you run into packs of them, fight them off if you can. But try to avoid them if you wanna keep your strength. They tend to come in waves sometimes. If you run into the plague... just run," He warned sternly. Guardia exchanged a glance with the Umbreon, before she nodded.

"We'll be back," Guardia stated, and proceeded through the canyon behind James.

James walked with a relatively quickened pace, though not exactly pulling into a full sprint. There were twists and turns through the canyon which eventually made the Great Vantage blocked from sight. Guardia was certain that if they tried to go find this place on their own without a guide, they would have been lost. Another turn was taken, and with that, a group of about a dozen plagued 'mon were in sight. There were three Mightyena, two Igglybuffs, a Magmar, a Prinplup, and five Lairon. They screamed and howled at each other, as if they were trying to communicate but didn't know how. They had sickly dark purple eyes, and cracks along their bodies as if their veins had been filled with poison and were now popping out.

"Plagued ones," James commented. "Not a lot, we can probably take them out fairly easy since we have to go that way."

"Perhaps we should try and knock them out instead of killing them?" Thomas suggested. "It's not their fault this is happening to them."

"It's not their fault, but it'll be much easier to kill them and be done with it," James stated casually.

When Cal first set eyes upon the plagued ones, he wasn't even listening to the conversation. He just stared at the poor forsaken 'mon and couldn't surpress the thought that if he had wanted to, Darkrai could have probably turned him into one of them when they had fought. Contemplating it sent shivers up the Emerald Sentinel's spine, so he focused on the task at hand. "I'm honestly a bit skeptic that the plague really is irreversible, but either way we don't have time to screw around. We can't risk losing more of the Vantage because we wasted time and energy trying not to kill 'mon that there's a strong chance are already doomed. If you see an opportunity, knock'em down, if you can't, make sure they stay down."

James nodded, and burst forward at the group of plagued 'mon. Instantly, many of them shrilled and roared at his presence. He ran forward and caught one of the Lairon with flame-powered kick directly to the jaw. The force and power of the strike torpedoed the 'mon to the side of the canyon wall, causing it to briefly shake. Guardia also proceeded out, with the two Igglybuffs in sight. She struck at both of them with a dual Crush Claw at each hand. The 'mon didn't even flinch as they seemed to run right into them. Guardia felt bad as she did this. They didn't even seem to know danger or pain anymore. They were simply mindless ferals now. The Mightyenas, Prinplup and Magmar quickly turned their attention to Cal, Anna and Rattles.

Cal's eyes widened when one of the Mightyenas ran at him with amazing speed and tackled him to the ground before snapping at his throat. They wrestled for a for only a short while before Cal flipped his attacker over and slammed it into the ground. He was satisfied to see the fight go out of the Mightyena until he saw the awkward angle its neck was tilted at. "Crap...This isn't how I wanted it to go."

Unlike Cal, Rattles seemed to have no qualms with using lethal force, showing no emotion as she grabbed another of the Mightyenas with her feelers and spun, grinding her iron barbs against its neck at high speed.

As the rest dispatched with their feral 'mons, Guardia looked around at the collapsed bodies with a hint of sadness. "It's not right, any of it," She murmured. "How many innocent have to die because of this damn plague? Arceus..."

James stood beside Guardia and examined the bodies on the floor as well, though not nearly with the level of empathy that Guardia had. More like an observance. "Come on, this was only the beginning. The noise may have attracted oth-"

James was suddenly interrupted by a set of loud screeches from a nearby pathway to the group's left. This was met by more howls and roars from the back of the group, more from other paths within the labyrinth canyon. Feral Pokemon slowly began populating the areas, appearing in bulk from each of the sides. They came by pairs, then by dozens, and slowly moved on to higher levels from there. "****," James cursed.

"Too many to fight off. Break east, then go north. Let's move!" Guardia yelled as she turned quickly to run away. Thomas followed behind her as fast as he could. James formed a powerful flame between his fingertips, and fired it off into the direction of the left. The embers roared and scattered as they struck the feral 'mon. A good portion fell, but they were quickly replaced by more. The Blaziken cursed again, and ran behind Thomas and Guardia. The canyon slowly began to be swarmed by the feral monsters.

Cal followed up James' attack with a Draco Meteor to slow the ferals down as best as they could and follow after the others. "Go ahead you guys! Don't worry if I fall back to slow them down some more, I can fly, this place doesn't mess with my mobility!"

"Are you crazy, Sentinel?!" Guardia yelled. "You'll get swarmed, we have to stick together! Keep pushing forward!" She yelled as she fired off a thunder wave onto a feral Furret and continued to dash forward. The plagued ones continued to converge on all directions as they ran forward. "We have to make it to the northern vantage! We can get shelter there!"

"Don't worry!" Cal called out. "I won't do anything stupid! If we're gonna go though we have to hustle! I've been practicing something new that should do well here." He shot into the air and flew over his allies' heads, then spun in place very fast with his wings half furled whipping the air around him into frenzy. After a few long moments of spinning he came to an abrupt halt and flapped his wings once hard, sending a miniature Hurricane barreling along the path in front of them. The attack didn't do too much killing, aside from those who fell too far down the canyon, but it certainly cleared a temporary path for the group as infected 'mon were flung too and fro like ragdolls.

"Let's not waste it!" James called out as he burst forward to the temporary open path.

"Gah... damn it, Cal!" Guardia cursed. "Don't fall behind!" She demanded. But feral 'mon were already swarming around from behind, with dozens upon dozens in sight gathering from behind. If they weren't going to push forward now, they were going to get overwhelmed. Feral 'mon attacked from all sides, while flying ones also targeted Cal and the others. Guardia noticed that the flying 'mon had trouble moving their wings too successfully. She remembered hearing the air was more scarce and condensed within the caves. Flight for too long wasn't possible. She hoped Cal would manage.

Of course he should have known the momentary air superiority was too good to be true, why wouldn't a place like the Great Vantage have plenty of flyers? It was only a fluke that they hadn't been swarmed sooner. Cal strained his wings to try and catch up to the others but he didn't make it far before a big weight slammed into him and hurled him off course. A feral Flygon had sideswiped him and the two tumbled through the air a few seconds before he was able to twist enough to strike back. Luckily very few dragon types had a defense against his Ice Punch, especially this close. As soon as he could disentangle himself from the Flygon Cal darted to the side and slammed a frosted fist into the base of its wing and righted himself as it went sailing down the canyon. A cough wormed it's way out of his throat and the Dragonite began to dive back down to his companions, trying not to huff too much. "Geeze, the air here is so thin, I've been to places way higher than this where I could still breath easy, but here..." He shook his head while he ran alongside them.

"It's one of the reasons why I hear this place is such a defensive point!" Thomas bellowed as he dodged a Poochyena plagued 'mon attempted to crunch at him. He sighed in relief and kept moving on. The pile of plagued 'mon behind them weren't deterred the least bit. In fact, they only seemed to have further gained in numbers. "'Mon can only attack through the canyon, and they break upon the vantage points! Bah!" He yelled as a Yanma attempted to pick him up, though he was swiftly burned down by an ember from James. Thomas sighed. "Thank you."

"Just keep moving!" James yelled from the front as he led them down the vantage path.

"How much longer before we reach the northern vantage?!" Guardia cried out to James up front, as she threw down a Thunder between the group and their pursuers, to momentarily cause a lightning forcefield that prevented them from following. The Thunder eventually dissipated a few seconds later and the plagued 'mon continued their mindless pursuit.

"Not long! Hold them back and we'll make up the ground ahead!" James called back.

Rattles did her best to support the group by jumping and launching a volley of Pin Missiles. It was nowhere near the hail of daggers that "Needlestorm" could manage, but the thick barbs still packed a punch.

Since he was still in the back of the group Cal put all of his energy into a gigantic Ice Punch and slammed his fist into the ground at his feet, covering the ground behind the group in a wide sheen of slick frost before running at full speed again. The resulting creation caused scores of the feral beasts to begin slipping across the sheet of ice and tumbling over. This momentarily created traffic down the path which slowed the plagued ones down.

Guardia looked behind at the mayhem and grinned. "Good thinking, Sentinel!" She exclaimed and continued to run forward.

The group continued their march through the canyons for a little while, before James finally spoke up. "Alright, we're nearly there, just one more turn to the left, and the northern vantage is straight ahe-"

James turned the corner first and came to an immediate halt. Thomas skidded across the canyon floor and stopped beside him, then as Guardia made the turn she did the same. About a half a kilometer ahead she could see the gates of the northern vantage, where they were trying to go. But between their group and those gates, there were feral, plagued 'mon beating alone the gates, and trampling up, down and across the canyon. This wasn't a few packs that were pursuing them before. There were hundreds, maybe thousands of them. Guardia debated trying to double back and find another path down, but she could hear the ferals that were pursuing them had already broken passed Cal's distractions and were close behind them. They were surrounded by the mob pursuing behind them and this army of plagued ones in front of them.

"... ****."

 

[SV]

The Lord of the Plague

"An egg was left for three days at the edge of the hottest volcano," A Meowth explained in the dark of the night, surrounded by a group of other 'mon around a fire. The Meowth had his hands extended, warming himself from the cold night air. "For three blistering days and three scorching nights, the volcano spewed molten magma across the terrain, covering it with ash and smoke and dust. But the magma merely surrounded the egg. The egg never cracked. But it blackened. It blackened and charred and erroded. And by the time the Pokemon hatched, his soul was already as black as the shell of his egg. And that was how Bastille was born."

"That's a load of Stantler-**** if I ever did hear it," A Gloom stated next to him. "The Priest wasn't born by a volcano, he was born from his own fog! The devil Giratina formed it, and he was spit out because Giratina needed his own presence felt on the world."

"Giratina's son? Is that the best you have?" A young Lotad laughed beside the Gloom. "Bastille is Gabriel's long-time cousin. They grew up together, that's where he came from."

"No, Gabriel is thousands of years old!" The Meowth exclaimed. "That ain't it!"

"Better than your volcano theory," A Mankey muttered with a roll of his eyes. "I hear he's from Karn, a former General who went mad with power after losing to a fight for his spot. So he decided to take it out on the rest of the world and poison everyone to oblivion."

"I mean… I could see that, but that seems so plain," The Gloom stated. "Not enough meat on the story, ya know?"

"I thought we were just trying to find out the truth!" The Lotad yelled.

"That don't mean the truth ain't something cool!" The Gloom shouted back.

The Meowth sighed and warmed himself closer on the fire. He wrapped his hood around him as a burst of cold air flew by. His Darkrai cloak insignia was present on the front. "Friggen cold… I mean, why don't we just ask him?" He asked the rest. "I have guard duty around the palace tomorrow, and I hear he sometimes talks to the guards. Asks them random questions."

"W-what? You're seriously gonna do that?" The Gloom asked incredulously. The Lotad and Mankey both gave him stares as well.

"Yeah, why not?" The Meowth asked. "He's not going to like, do anything, will he?"

"I mean… I dunno. Seems impolite to ask. What if he throws you into the fog? Kills ya?" The Gloom asked worriedly.

"Why would he do that?" The Meowth asked.

The Mankey sighed and then shrugged. "Why would a 'mon create something that kills on such a powerful scale?" He asked the Meowth back. The group fell to silence. The Meowth glanced at the crackling fire, then stared at it intently.

"I hear stories," The Meowth began. "Even long before this plague. About the poison plagues of the past. Conducted by a powerful magic. That destroyed in the hundreds. That came from the fog. It's the same one, same as this one, just evolved when combined with Darkrai's power."

"So he's done this before," The Gloom commented.

The Meowth snorted. "Oh, yeah, he's done this before. He's done it over and over again."

"But… I mean, why?" The Gloom asked. "It would make sense maybe if the reason is because he wants to help build Darkrai's new world, but if he's been constantly doing it before, then what does that make him? Psychotic? Evil?"

"I don't see it," The Mankey murmured. "He never seemed the 'kill all 'mon' or 'I am evil' type. He seemed… I dunno, can't really explain it. Just… normal? I mean, besides the accent. He seemed calm. Articulate. Pretty friendly when it came down to it."

"You talked to him?" The Meowth asked. The Mankey shook his head

"Well, no, I kinda overheard him talking to another," The Mankey answered. "But I was in the area."

"... I'm gonna talk to him, if he talks to me," The Meowth declared, as the others stared at him. "What?! W-what's the worst that will happen?"

---

"... just a few 'mon, probably, I wouldn't say more than a couple perps," A Hitmonchan dressed in the priest's personal guard declared toward a Drapion standing at the edge of the Citadel, overlooking the city. He was dressed in a long, flowing red robe, with strange etchings and marking along it. Through the thick fog, his eyes pierced at the fire which had just spread, courtesy of Abel. The Meowth, who had just been assigned guard duty, watched the exchange in great interest.

"I would like you to find dees perpatrator, and bring heem befow me," The Drapion ordered in a strange accent.

"Yes, Lord Bastille. Alive?" The Hitmonchan asked.

"Eef at all possiball," The Drapion replied. He turned toward the Hitmonchan, revealing a pair of golden eyes. The Meowth shuddered when he saw them. He had never quite seen anything like them. Even though he wasn't looking in his direction, he almost felt as if they pierced into his soul.

"Yes, sire," The Hitmonchan bowed, and departed. The Meowth continued to watch the Priest with interest. As the Hitmonchan left, the Priest turned and moved steadily and slowly toward his spot by the window, watching the city. He suddenly motioned to his right, where the Meowth stood, and the Meowth suddenly felt his stomach churn. Was he motioning to him. The Meowth carefully looked around, and upon seeing no one else in the area, immediately ran before Bastille and bowed.

"Y-you called, sire?!" He squeaked a bit louder than he intended. Bastille's eyes never left the city of Mercurion as he spoke.

"I expect dees to be da wuk of stragglos. Possible remnants of the Gold Tribe. What say you?" He asked. The Meowth stayed silent, not sure how to answer.

"Uh… uhm… are you speaking to me, L-lord Bastille?" The Meowth managed to murmur out. "O-or do you m-mean to call someone else over? I-I'm just a guard, no a-a-advisor… or an-"

"I speak to you." Bastille stated forcefully, his eyes setting on the Meowth for the first time. The Meowth paled instantly. "A King weel listen to da advice of his advisoes, and thus die by the assasseen's wound. A peasant weel go along the strent of his own back, and die too he weel, from his own stupeedeety, or by way of the King's ordas. But a wise 'mon will seek advice wherever it may be, and not judge eet's origins."

The Meowth shivered at the Drapion, and swallowed hard. "Uhm… I mean…"

"Eet ees a simple question. I say thees ees the wok of leftovers of the Tribe, or puhaps soldias. What say you?"

"I…" The Meowth swallowed again. "I d-don't know, sire. I mean, the Gold Tribe are honorable. And we haven't seen any in a long while. Would they really have waited this long while… you know, they were all dying around here, the err, citizens here I mean, before p-popping up again?"

Bastille gazed at the smaller Meowth curiously. He silently observed him, before he smiled and glanced back out the window again. "A new line of tought with every dialogue. Tank you."

"Y-yes, sire," The Meowth bowed, but his legs didn't carry him away. He remained by Bastille's side.

"Was dere sometin else?" Bastille inquired.

"I… I was just… I mean, never mind, sire." Meowth mumbled.

"Ask yo question," Bastille demanded.

The Meowth shivered once more as Bastille's eyes set on him again. "It's just that! Ahem… uhm, my friends and I were wondered… why is it that you created the plague? I mean, we just… I know it's personal. But… we know you did it before Gabriel too. So uh…"

"Ah," Bastille began. "Very obsavant. Yes, eet ees true. My fog ees my own doing. You ask why?"

"Y-yes sire."
"Because eet ees natural. Because eet ees our purpose," The Priest answered. The Meowth titled his head in confusion.

"Tink of the various types of Pokemon in the world. We all have such incredible abilitees. Usefol abilitees. A water Pokemon can provide sustenance for many. A grass food. A fire type may wawm the body of eetself and odas. Each has an eenherit funcshan. But den der a some dat have an entirely deeferant funcshan. What ees a poison's funcshan, do you know?" The Priest asked. "Eet ees death. Eet ees to keel. Eet ees our natural predeesposeeshan. I am merely fulfeeling da natural oda. By becoming da best posseeball. Dat… dat ees my funcshan. Dat ees my natural oda. And Gabreel is geeving me da tools to achieve dat. Do you undastand?"

"I… I think I do," The Meowth stated.

"Den our beeiness ees concluded. You may return to yo stayshan."

"Yes… Lord Bastille."

 

[Sephear]

Cal, Guardia, Rattles, Anna, James, Thomas and ????:
Hope​

Guardia cursed multiple expletives under her breath. There was no place seemingly to go, and very little time left to react. The Zangoose tried at this moment to weigh their options in the short seconds they had before they were overwhelmed. They could try forcing forward, but the likelihood of being able to fight off a horde of that size was impossible. A ground attack would be near-impossible, even with the narrowness of the canyon, and an air assault wouldn't be much better, especially since only one or two of the group would be able to fly up there. Conversely, the way back seemed to be less packed, but still posed the issue of being chased from behind by that enormous force. Plus, she didn't like the chances of facing that size of a force regardless. Whatever way she looked at it, they were in a bad situation. And now, it appeared time to decide was running out. Many of the ferals in front had by then noticed the small group, and were beginning to howl and roar and advance. A decision had to be made.

Thankfully, she didn't have to make it on her own. A sudden, loud bang erupted from the side of the canyon wall, causing rocks to split apart and crush incoming feral beasts and push them to the other side of the canyon wall. The affair didn't look like a natural rock slide from the side of the canyon, more like the wall just exploded, which was strange, as the canyon walls of the Vantage were notoriously sturdy. From the settling debris, a large hole seemed to have formed. Guardia squinted to see the silhouettes of several 'mon. The debris settled some more, enough for her to make out the form of a Hawlucha in front, with an Excadrill, Torterra, Ninetails, Heliolisk and Electivire behind him. She widened her eyes a bit, believing she may have recognized them. But she had to be sure.

"Right on time, looks like!" The Hawlucha exclaimed in a loud, over-the-top, voice. Guardia's eyes widened more, and a smile instantly formed to her face. There was no mistaking that voice. "Terram, prop me up! I'm gonna give these sons of *****es something to look at!" The Hawlucha ordered. The dust settled more, with Guardia making out a glint of gold along the shoulder of the Hawlucha. In fact, the same glint was etched on each one of the 'mon. There was no mistaking it.

The Excadrill grinned and nodded. "Aye, Prime!" He roared in a raspy voice. He brought his leg down onto the ground, causing a pillar to form underneath the Hawlucha. It formed and pushed the Hawlucha with it as he rose through the air. The pillar continued to grow until it shot above the dust and debris. Now, Guardia and the rest of the group could clear see the 'mon. The Hawlucha's entire right arm was covered by a golden armor. Guardia had always known him to have it, perhaps unecessarily so. The heavier armor on just one arm completely threw off his balance, actually making him unable to fly at all like other Hawluchas. The most he could do was glide awkwardly. He had come to adapt to it, and even thrive off of it. When he relies on his gliding, because his balance is thrown off, he moves in a strange, unpredictable pattern. The handicap is easily fixable if he simply wore an armband instead of an entire plate of gold, like his colleagues. But the Hawlucha purposefully wears this, because he states that he wants all 'mon, foes and enemies alike, to know exactly who he is and what he fights for. That is the type of 'mon is. Notoriously rash, unbelievably reckless, preposterously stubborn, and above all that, incredibly caring. In Beatruce, he is one of the strongest fighters, even with his disadvantage, and also one of the strongest protectors of Pokemon justice. He is Eric Dorulgo, known as "Prime", the leader of the Beatrucian Gold Tribe.

Prime sucked in a deep breath, and yelled at the top of his lungs. "HEY, COME GET SOME OF THIS!" Down to the monsters below, including the fliers above. Many of their attentions started going toward him. The Hawlucha suddenly took a nose dive into the crowd directly in front of the hole. He tackled into them, forcing many out of the way.

The rest of the group behind Prime were now visible too, with all of them being Beatrucian Gold Tribe members. There was the Excadrill, Matthew "Terram" Terace, Jeanette "Fulgur" the Electivire, Lana "Pyre" the Ninetales, and "Mountain" the Torterra. "In we go, please!" The Torterra Gold Tribe called out to the rest of the group, as ferals began to converge on their position. "This is a secret path that will take us behind the gates!" He explained.

"... Do you know them, Guardia?" Thomas asked in confirmed. Guardia grinned and nodded.

"Yeah! They're the Beatrucian Gold Tribe!" She replied proudly. As she fired off a Thunder toward a nearing pair of Fearow before darting to the large hole. The other Beatrucian Gold Tribe members began backing into the hole while firing off at feral mon.

"Alright!" Cal yelled at the top of his lungs just before throwing a feral Hitmonlee into the crowd of its fellows. "Look who finally showed up! It's been a while boys! We've got plenty to tell you, when we've got a sec to breathe that is!" He waved at Prime and his procession before beating back a few more ferals. Prime gave the Dragonite a grin and a salute back. "Alright come on let's go! Anna and Thomas first! Then Guardia, then James and I will go last!"

Thomas nodded and proceeded through the large hole with Anna. Mountain and Pyre covered their tracks, with Pyre firing off a powerful flamethrower at a pair of swooping Swellows, while Mountain fought back two Poliwhirl ferals with Razor Leaf. More feral 'mon began to converge at the opening, with them attacking from every possible side. James tore down groups of them at a time with combos of Close Combat, but more began replacing them with each ones to fall. After knocking down a Wooper with a Crush Claw, Guardia knew they had to proceed inside. "Let's get out of here!" She called to James, Prime, and Cal, who were all still holding off the hole along with Terram and Mountain, who were ready to collapse the hole again.

Cal, James and Prime backed towards the hole in what was practically a three-mon phalanx, tearing apart any feral that got too close and firing off attacks to keep the others away until they made it with everyone else. Once they were there Cal followed Guardia through, with the rest of the stragglers close on his tail.

As the last of them made it through the hole, Prime cried out, "NOW, TERRAM!" With that, The Excadrill hit the side of the wall, causing the rock formations of the canyon to suddenly burst down as if it were a trap door, effectively cutting off the rest of the ferals and shadowing the group in the darkness of the canyon interior. "Whew! Close one!" Prime sighed heavily. "Pyre, give us a light!" He ordered the Ninetales Gold Tribe member.

"On it," The tender-voiced Ninetales replied, and a few seconds later, a small ember was lit at the tip of her paw. James did the same, cradling a low fire in between his palm.

"Good, now I can look at you all," Prime stated with a grin and a nod of his head. He looked over the group and shook his head in disbelief. "Of all the 'mon, finding you here was the last thing I woulda expected, sister."

Guardia grinned and began greeting Prime in the traditional Beatrucian way, but Prime quickly ran up and gave both her and Cal a huge hug. "HAHA! You crazy sons of *****es! Good to see ya!" He called out. "Damn good," He repeated as he moved away for a moment from the two to glance them over again. "You guys look great, all things considered!"

Cal smiled all the way across his face and smacked Prime on the back. "Yeah I suppose a fella could look worse after staring down the 'great dark one' himself, I've gotta keep spiffy what with the...promotion and all." He took a better look around the passageway and made sure he had his bearings. "It's a good thing you guys came around when you did, things were getting hairier than a Mamoswine out there."

"Wouldn't be Gold Tribe if we didn't!" Thunder, the young Heliolisk replied as he came from the back of the group. He snickered and by his ear-to-ear grin Anna could tell he was probably excited after their near-death experience. She didn't see it as being all that fun but-- "I like to think coming in the nick of time is one of our specialties!" --she wouldn't agree with that either. Anna wished their specialty was coming way before the point of desperation. She was shaken by the running and the almost-being-ripped-apart moments that they just suffered through. Barely anything had gone through her mind other than get away. Why she decided to come this way? She didn't know, maybe as a way to prove to herself that she could handle all of this. It became increasingly obvious to her as their journey continued that quietly working with the SEC was more her calling than anything as daring and dangerous as being a Gold Tribe member. Then again, being in the SEC got her here, didn't it? "So other than to have fun kicking ass, what brought you guys out here?"

The Emerald Sentinel's joviality seemed to die out at the reminder of what had been his - and very well most of their mixed-loyalties group's - main goal for quite some time: Cresselia. He looked straight at Thunder and then turned to Prime, feeling it was the Hawlucha who was most likely to have an answer. "A while back a message was sent out from the Great Vantage a message about finding 'hope'." The intensity in Cal's eyes grew and he sounded almost desperate with his next few words. "We MUST find out...what is that hope?"

Prime glanced at Cal, then across at the rest of his Gold Tribe members. He smiled at them, most of which grinned or smiled back, before Prime turned once more to the Dragonite and replied. "You're gonna wanna come with us back to base. Something like this, it's better to show ya then tell ya," He explained, as he turned around and motion the group to follow. Suddenly, as he began walking, he halted. "BUT FIRST! Intros!" He exclaimed and turned around. "You got some new peeps with you, Guardia. I know our brothers and sisters, but who're the rest?"

Guardia nodded and gestured. "Right. This is Thomas Blake, formerly of the Valkarian Exposure," He stated as he pointed to the Hypno.

Prime sucked in some air and cringed slightly. "Eeek, you screwed up with that one, mate," He stated bluntly. Thomas lowered his head a bit, but Prime was quick to pat him on the back. "No worries! You're doing the right thing now, that's what matters!"

"Thank you, Prime," Thomas stated politely with a slight bow of his head.

"This is James, he's a... uh... he's a mercenary," Guardia continued to explain. James, who was staring at some part of the canyon wall, did nothing beyond turning to Prime briefly and giving him a slight nod of his head. "This is Rattles. And this is Anna, a deputy leader of SEC."

Prime mouthed an 'ooh', looking rather impressed at the Mareep. "Nice bowtie," He commented.

"It IS pretty snazzy." Cal had to join in.

"Oh uh," Anna's wool was hot from embarassment, "thank you." She did put in her best effort to pick one that properly expressed her hopes for the day. It was an unfortunate side effect of the war that she only had one bowtie to express that sentiment with. She had chosen optimistic orange for the 30 Year Anniversery. A color of adventure. A color for recovery... Anna had to clear her mind of Gold City. "And if I may ask the names of everyone else? I'm happy to meet you Prime and...?" She looked to the others.

The Heliolisk perked up instantly. "They call me 'In Before the Ligh--'"

"It's Thunder," Prime suddenly interjected. "JUST Thunder." The Heliolisk with the notably long name looked unhappy that his introduction was cut short.

"Evening boys and girls, they call me Terram!" The Excadrill Gold Tribesmon practically roared.

"Pyre," The Ninetales stated somewhat timidly.

"I'm called Mountain," The Torterra stated in a very low voice.

"Fulgur!" The beaming Electivire chimed in.

"We also got Firebird watchin' back at base," Prime added.

"Firebird's with you? Good to hear," Guardia stated with a smile. She paused for a moment hesitantly, wondering if she should ask her next query, but decided to hold off for now.

"How about Atrox?" Prime suddenly asked before Guardia could. "How's our old second-in-command doing?"

"Abel?" Guardia clarified. "He's doing well. He's helped us tremendously on our missions in Tollen and Anatellia. He's a valuable asset. He's back here in Beatruce now, but he's in Mercurion, dealing with the creator of the plague."

"He's here? In Beatruce?" Mountain asked, to which Guardia nodded. "Good to have him home," He stated with a sigh of relief.

"Probably for the best that he didn't come with you guys here," Fulgur murmured as she lowered her head. The rest of the Gold Tribe also seemed to frown.

Guardia tilted her head. "What? Why?" She inquired.

Prime clenched his fist and walked onward through the tunnels on the way to the base. Pyre turned to answer Guardia. "Along with Firebird back at base, this is all that's left of the Beatrucian Gold Tribe. Everyone else... dead. From the plague, the ferals, or the Priest's 'mon."

Guardia's eyes widened. "... this is it?" She asked in a voice barely above a whisper. Pyre nodded solemnly, and Guardia could feel her heart sink. "Even Anzu then..." Guardia murmured, to which Pyre nodded. "... She died not more than a week ago."

Guardia closed her eyes and shuddered. She didn't know how to react, except to feel utter sadness. These were her brothers and sisters, fellow tribes'mon that she helped build up here. And all of them, save for a small handful, had died. Thomas looked at the Beatrucian Gold Tribe and then whispered to Guardia. "Apologies, but who is this Anzu?" He asked as politely as he could.

"It's Abel's younger sister," Guardia answered.

Callimer's antennae drooped and he seemed at a loss for a moment, this was like returning to Ferrol just to be told they'd completely lost contact with Gold City. "A-all of them?..." Even Anzu...He tried to imagine if someone told him Kav was gone forever. So many things ran through his head at once, like how they should have come to Beatruce sooner, done more, they came so fast that none of them ever formed into coherent speech. With no warning his right hand slammed into the wall so hard that the tunnel rumbled precariously in warning and a rock fell to shatter on his head as they walked.

Guardia glanced at her own second-in-command. She could tell he was feeling the same remorse she was. All the Gold Tribe had that connection between them. She tried her best to move on for now. Maybe all of this would be worth it. She glanced at the others and proceeded forward. "Come on, let's go to the base," She stated as she proceeded forward. The rest of the group moved, except James, who was still behind, staring at that same part of the wall. Guardia glanced back briefly, then walked over to the Blaziken. "Hey, everything alright?" She asked as she patted him on the shoulder. She looked over to see what he was looking at: a small, strange marking, where some random letters and numbers were etched, 'LE215.' "What's that?" Guardia asked.

"I don't know," James answered plainly. Guardia glanced again at him, and then back at the wall. "Why do you care so much about it, then?" She asked. James just shrugged and continued down the path.

"Not the first time I saw it," He answered.

"Huh? Where else did you see it?" Guardia asked as she walked with him through the tunnels.

"Here in my first trip a week ago," James answered plainly again. "Marked in random areas. I think I saw it at the end of our trip in Anatellia too."

Guardia cocked an eyebrow. "What? Really? What does that mean?"

"Hell if I know. Hell if I care. Just thought it was interesting," James murmured, and proceeded with the rest of the group through the tunnels. Guardia shrugged it off for now as well, and followed. The group proceeded through the long, dark tunnel of the canyon, guided by the fires coming from Pyre and James. They eventually reached the end, where Terram did the same motion on the tunnel floor to lift up the cave before. The light from the end filled the tunnel, and Guardia took in the sight of the vantage for the first time.

To call it a mess would be an understatement. The last time she had passed through here, the base had a full village inside, with an irrigation system and grass growing across. The wall was patrolled by two dozen 'mon at all times, including at least three Gold Tribes'mon. Now, most of the grass around was dead or burnt, as if a sickness had passed over them. Homes were burned or broken apart, and all seemed abandoned. The wall which Guardia saw earlier, where hundred, or thousands, of ferals were in front of, was only guarded by a single 'mon, the aformentioned Talonflame Gold Tribe member 'Firebird'. All other soldiers seemed gone. In fact, it seemed that the half dozen or so Gold Tribe members were the only defenders in this place anymore.

"Wait... are you the only ones here?" Guardia asked Prime. Prime nodded.

"It ain't easy fighting off a friggen army," Prime replied with a grin. "That wall saved us a bunch of trouble. Thick enough to stop a ground attack, high enough so that most 'mon can't fly over without freezin'."

"Reminds me of the last few armies we fought, back in the forests...to be fair though we had it easier, those armies weren't carrying an extremely contagious and existence-ruining plague so..." Cal added in.

"Sounds like a fun time," Prime commented. "Remind me to ask you what you guys have been up to since we last saw each other. Didn't you mention something about facing off against the Dark One too? What's up with that?"

"Prime, aren't you forgetting?" Pyre interrupted softly.

"Right, right, raincheck, talk later!" He exclaimed and pointed at Callimer. He motioned for the group to follow him. They proceeded through the ruined and broken base, passing by the abandoned houses and the dead grass everywhere. Guardia examined these and frowned. She remembered how much life used to be in this place. It was one of her favorite spots in the vantage to come to. Now, everything was dead. All because of the plague.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rr6CE0wjAlk

Her eyes spotted something, though, something near one of the worn houses. Grass. Fresh, green grass which was growing steadily around, without any signs of burns or decay. Prime and the other Gold Tribe members lead the group to a particular house where this fresh grass grew. The Zangoose immediately felt a strange sensation as she stepped on the fresh grass. It was... odd. Calming. Soothing. She felt at peace, as if she had just awoken from a nice, relaxing nap. She felt... she felt this way before. Thirty years ago. When she first found...

"There," Prime stated in almost a whisper, as he opened up the rag which replaced the front door to the house. Inside, a Pokemon slept on the ground, surrounded by fresh green grass, the only place in the base from which any sort of life seemed to be displayed. It was a Musharna, sleeping peacefully in a ball.

For what felt like the first time in forever, Cal felt all of his fears and doubts melt away, even those about Darkrai. He just stood there and watched the little pink sphere doze for a bit before he shook his head and was able to focus again. He had heard stories that described such a feeling from some of their brothers and sisters in the tribe. "This is it, isn't it?" Were the only awe-stricken words to leave the Dragonite's mouth.

"Her name's Lia," Prime explained as he crossed his arms and gazed down upon the sleeping 'mon. "At least, that's what we've named her. She doesn't really talk."

"What... who... is she, exactly?" Thomas asked curiously.

Prime shrugged as he continued to gaze down upon her. "Two months, ago, we were in the process of clearing out the northern vantages, including this one. We were trying to escort refugees to the Great Vantage. Ferals had other plans."

"There was a Arceus-damn army of them!" Terram interjected. "Blocking all the paths south to the Network Points!"

"We had to go north, try to cut around them," Prime continued. "But the deeper we went, the more trouble we ran into. More refugees asking for help... stragglers... the plague... and more of those damn ferals. We were holed up in hell, trying to keep everyone alive, through that shitstorm," The Hawlucha clenched his fist. "A lot of 'mon didn't make it. If I had more..." He closed his eyes and sucked in a deep breath. "Then we ran into her," Prime's grin returned, and pointed to the Musharna. "There was this group of 'mon. Refugees. Teens, kids, mostly. They were scared shitless, you should have seen 'em. And they should have been! Over a dozen ferals around, nowhere to run! Before we got to them, she showed up. Cut right in between them. And wanna know what happened next?" Prime asked rhetorically. "Not a damn thing. It's like they... gave up, stopped acting so mindless. They just... stopped. We saw her do things since then. Cured those who got infected, make those around her be immune from the plague. Stop ferals. She can't fully cure those who are already feral. But anything else connected to the plague, she's an all star."

"So this is..." Guardia began to say.

"This is hope," Prime stated. "She's a buncha fun too, just wait till she wakes up!"

Rattles stepped up close and moved in next to her face, watching the sleeping 'mon for a bit. She then lifted one of her feelers and poked at her to try and wake her. The Musharna began to stir in her sleep. She slowly opened her eyes drowsily, and focused them on who was around her. Seeing the Ferrothorn in her face, she quickly sneezed right at her, which caused her to suddenly float backward into the air, spiralling a few times in a circle. The Musharna gave a light giggle, before she began examining the others in the room. The 'mon began to float around the group, flying first around Rattles, then Cal, Guardia and Thomas. She glanced at them with curiosity, as if it was the first time she had set eyes on Pokemon of that species before. She glanced at James as well, but was a bit more hesitant to fly around him. She settled close beside Prime.

"Say hello, Lia, these are our friends," Prime stated to the Musharna. The Musharna simply glanced up at the group, then at Prime and smiled.

"I-it's very nice to meet you." Cal stammered out awkwardly. "We'll do whatever we can to keep you safe, you could be the vantage's salvation. Plus...any mon as nice as you should be protected." He finished with a smile.

The Musharna known as Lia looked up at the giant green Dragonite and tilted her head. She rose up off the ground and began spinning around him curiously. She poked his green skin like a child discovering a new toy for the first time.

"She doesn't really speak," Prime explained. "I don't think she really understands us, either. She just... kinda feels other 'mon out."

"Where did she come from?" Guardia asked.

Prime shrugged. "Dunno, and really, don't care. All I know is, she's the key to saving Beatruce. Well, that and knocking out Bastille in Mercurion. But that's another story. What we've been trying to do is get her back to the capital. Problem is..."

"The ferals," Guardia finished Prime's thought. It all clicked now. "So you've been holed up here this whole time trying to find a way back."

Prime nodded. "Now that we doubled our numbers, maybe we can pull something off. Got any ideas how to get past a thousand ferals?" He asked with a grin.

Cal looked nervously at his bag. "I have one, but it's a last resort, it's better off not to use it unless we absolutely have to, it's not perfected yet."

"I don't give two shits about perfected or not!" Prime yelled. "Getting her out of here is our priority! And we're gonna get it done, so if you have any ideas, I wanna know!"

"Prime!" Pyre exclaimed. "Apologies, Prime is a bit impulsive sometimes, as you know. It's why we have Atrox as our second-in-command, to balance him out. But we'll hear all ideas if we have to."

"I think I know where Cal is going with his," James interjected. "And I agree, we should shelf it unless we absolutely have to use it. What's the layout look like?"

"Three paths," Mountain began explaining. "The one you guys came from, down south. Packed to the brim with those mindless ones. Then there's the path north that keeps going... well, north, out of canyon country, the wrong way. Then we have the path west. The former commander of the guards here blew that path up and collapsed it. It's filled with rocks. Would be hard to clear out, if at all possible."

"Hmmmm..." Cal pondered, antennae twitching as he thought. "Well North's right out unless it's got some sort of secret passage that curves around where we need to go. And I can't really say our odds of pushing through that sea of ferals we left behind are all that good, especially now that they're all in a tizzy about us...At first moving the rocks out of the west path seems like the safest option if we can physically do it, until you think of the possibility of getting trapped with our backs against a wall."

"Walls haven't come down yet, so as long as we keep 'em up, we shouldn't be fighting on both sides," Terram commented. "Moving the rocks... well, err, that might be... err..."

"There's some ferals there too," Pyre interjected in her soft voice. She looked on at Terram. "They have to know all the details, Terram," She stated to him. Terram looked down and frowned, and Pyre continued. "Not all of the Gold Tribe died from the plague. Some... some had different effects."

"You're not saying..." Guardia began, but her voice trailed off. Prime gritted his teeth, and Pyre nodded with a frown.

"There aren't as many plagued ones through that path, but a group of our turned brothers and sisters are... including Anzu."

"If I may ask," Anna began, "what are the dangers of the northern path? And what are beyond the canyons? Some sort of city or village?"

"The only danger is that they lead away from the direction we want," Mountain stated. "The northern path doesn't diverge back south to the cities at some point. Warrington is a small city up there, but there's no working Network Point and no way back to the capital from there. By now it's long overrun. It's not an option."

Anna smiled at Mountain. "Then the northern path is perfect. I work for the SEC and I can fix that Network Point so it can take us somewhere safe. If that's all that's wrong, I think it's the best option, even if it takes us longer than we'd prefer to get where we want to."

"No kidding, you can do that?!" Prime asked excitedly. "Right on, good to have you here, Anna! That's the path you should take, then!"

"Wow, solves most of our problems," Mountain murmured in surprise.

Cal's tail thumped the ground and he snorted resolutely before looking around at his beatrucian brothers and sister. "Even though I respect him I can't say I know Abel all that well, he's always been fairly distant and until recently he outranked me. So I feel the need to ask to make sure of my hunch.....Do you think he would prefer to take care of Anzu himself?" He let his words hang in the air, knowing that what he was leading up to suggesting would be much harder for Prime's 'mon than the rest of them. Although he still almost felt sick at the idea, and he was sure Guardia wouldn't like it much better.

"No," Mountain shook her head. "Atrox's a tough shell to crack, but his lil sis always got to him. She may have been the only thing he ever cared about. Well, expressely. Atrox loves his country. He can't know this is what became of her. It would destroy him."

Prime nodded and clasped his hands together. "But we also can't leave it just like this," The Hawlucha stated adamently. He gazed at Guardia, Cal, Anna and Thomas. "Anna fixing that Network Point is huge. You can get out of this scratch-free. Take Lia with you. Get out of here, and bring her back to the capital."

"Us?" Thomas asked. "You're not coming with us?"

"We will eventually," Prime replied. "But four of our own are taken by the plague. Before we leave... we have to take care of them. We owe them that much. We owe Atrox too. We can't leave before we put them to rest."

"But..." Thomas began. "You must understand that this is bigger than us! We must get her back to the capital, and we'll be able to do it better together! Who knows what could be up there to the north? We need everyone! Not just here, but after! There's a bigger picture here. And that Musharna is a big key!"

"Shut up!" Prime yelled as he slammed his fist along the canyon wall. Lia jumped slightly away from Prime as a reaction. "I don't give a **** about whatever you're talking about! Maybe it is important, and maybe she is special, I know she is. But this is important to me! And it's important to us! And if I don't do this, then I lose everything that makes me me," Prime explained. He looked at his Gold Tribe members and continued. "You can take my brothers and sisters with you if you have to, but I'm making sure this gets done. It's what any member of the tribe would do for each other!"

Before Prime could continue his outburts a green hand lay on his shoulders and another one lightly punched his gold pauldron. "I think you must have misunderstood me prime, I'm going with you. I was going to take care of Anzu myself...I have to, if we'd come to Beatruce sooner we might have saved her, and this entire time Abel's been respectful of our decisions even while he knew things were getting worse here. We owe him at least that much...As for him finding out, I don't know what we can do about that. If we win this war he's going to find out when it's over if not sooner anyways, but this, this we can help you with."

"Yeah, we," Thunder spoke up finally. He was never the one to talk much strategy, but this was different. "There's no way in hell you're going down there by yourself, Prime!" The heliolisk had an ear-to-ear grin. "If it's time to say goodbye then we're saying goodbye together!"

"Thunder's right!" Terram chimed in. "We're the Gold Tribe, we look after each other together!"

"Sentinel said what I was thinking," Guardia agreed. "We'll help you do this." She added with a nod.

"Guys..." Prime looked around and wiped his eyes quickly. "Alright! We'll do it together!"

"We should still deliver the Musharna back to the capital, I think, as soon as possible," Thomas stated, seeing his pleas have gone unheard. "And it may be prudent to point out that some of us aren't willing to compromise our lives for this endeavor. Some also may not be as suitable to fight Gold Tribe members. Perhaps we should divide? With you providing one or two escorts for the party heading north. There is no certainty what we will find up there, after all."

"Of course." Cal answered. "We can't leave Lia unprotected, but I have to do this. I think James should probably be one of the escorts, he's as strong as any of us if not even stronger, and all this sentimentality's got nothing to do with him....And if it all really goes to crap, he shares my last backup plan...And as hard as this may be to hear...I think one of you Beatrucian's should be an escort too. I know how important this is to all of you, but we owe it to Abel to make sure that if we fail, he's not left the only member of the Beatrucian Tribe. That's just too much to go through." He didn't voice his concerns that Guardia shouldn't go either. He wasn't comfortable with the first and second in command going on such a risky execution/diversion mission, but he knew saying so wouldn't make her budge an inch if she wanted to be there.

"Yeah, sure, whatever," James shrugged. "I'll go with the fuzzball."

"I will take her to Warrington," Mountain stated. "I would like to stay and fight with you brothers, as much as any of you, but this is just as important."

"I too will go north," Thomas stated.

Rattles lifted one of her feelers to "say" something, but it didn't come down immediately. While it hung there her eyes narrowed in a rare departure from her usual expressionlessness. Finally it came down and spelled, "I should go north." She stepped closer to Lia, but not before taking a good long look at the faces of Prime and Cal. It was almost as if she was reluctant to make the choice she had.

Guardia glanced at the Ferrothorn. "If you're sure, Rattles," The Zangoose replied. She was also a bit reluctant to send her off without any familiar face around. Well, besides Thomas and Anna, but Guardia didn't think she had gotten used to them as much as she did with Cal and herself. The Zangoose stared between Cal and Rattles for a moment, and then Lia. She gritted her teeth, hating herself slightly for the decision she was about to make. "On second thought, I'll go with the group north as well. Probably for the best not to have both the leader and second-in-command in one spot. Plus you already have Prime."

Cal let out a huge sigh of relief, then widened his eyes and straightened up, hoping nobody had noticed. Prime patted Cal on the back, before he walked over to Lia and knelt down beside her.

"Now Lia, the guys and I have to go do something," The Hawlucha began to explain as one would to a child. Lia just glanced up, curious as ever. Guardia wasn't entirely sure if she understood what he was saying. "But Guardia and Mountain and the rest are gonna take good care of ya, OK?" Lia continued to look up at Prime and smile. "We'll be back before you know it! So just wait for us in the capital. I promised you I would get you out and we'd have a bunch of fun out of the vantage, and I'm keeping my promise!"

Lia just floated above to Prime's eye level, circled around him a few times, and giggled. She then moved closer to Rattles and encircled the Ferrothorn a few times, before moving on to the others.

"We'll keep an eye on her, brother," Guardia stated to Prime with a nod. Prime grinned and gave her a thumbs up. "And we'll watch the big guy for ya. More like he'll be watching us, though!" He exclaimed as he elbowed Cal in the ribs.

"If it's decided then," Anna said as she looked between the two groups, "then we should get going as soon as we can."

Guardia nodded in agreement. She glanced upon Prime, Cal and the other Gold Tribe members, before she turned with her group and proceeded north, toward Warrington.

"Remember!" Cal called after them. "Don't hurry too much, getting to the town will be a lot easier if we have a chance to draw them away first!"

 

[Greiger]

-Sweet Memories-​

Chains.

Chains that held him in place.

The Infernape was chained up nice and tightly, not even capable of seeing the area around him. He didn't need to, though. He could hear the meek whimpers of those around him, more than likely chained up as well. Every so often he would hear a rattling sound and could easily equate it to steel bars being raked by clawed hands. Cages and chains, what a lovely combination they made.

He hadn't seen the sun in… what? Three or four days? He barely had been given any water or food either. All he could wonder was why he had been captured. He had fought thinking that at some point a mon would shove their claws through his stomach and his existence would end there. Instead he had been chained up and dragged throughout the wilderness. He had lost consciousness on the way and had awoke in this position.

To the Gold Tribe member it was outrageous to think that he could ever be chained up… but he was. Given the limited nutrients he was having a hard time gaining his strength back. Judging by the groans and moans around him it seemed that other captured individuals were likewise in the same rut he was in. If someone had come back in time to tell him that simple steel chains would one day hold him in place and he would be powerless to free himself, he would have laughed right in their face.

One could say that he had a massive ego the past few years. Being a Gold Tribe member wasn't easy. Only the best of the best could do it, after all. Many of his friends had been turned away… but he had passed! He had learned! He was one of the most powerful mon in all of Valkaria….. had been. The blow to his ego continued to sting and that pain wasn't going away anytime soon. It festered about and he wanted to scream in frustration. The gag in his mouth prevented that as well.

Even his tail had been chained up. That was perhaps the most embarrassing part. He literally could not move a single inch of his body besides some light squirming, but even that fulfilled little other than letting his captors know that he still had life in his bones. For the past few days he had dreamed of epic situations. Of freeing himself and freeing those imprisoned with him and absolutely destroying those who held him captive.

Those dreams quickly vanished as it became apparent that the opposition knew exactly what they were doing. There were no short cuts here. No cut corners or short hand. They knew what to look for. Every so often the ape would hear the sounds of clanging metal followed by the sounds of a mon being beaten. He didn't want to admit it, but the sound of hope fading caused his heart to falter. Was there really no way to escape their captivity? Were they to be rendered powerless for the rest of their lives?

Mikal just took in deep breaths, doing his best to keep calm. His spirit hadn't been crushed yet. He refused to show outside signs of weakness to his captors. That hadn't stopped his fellow captives from breaking down. He would hear weeping and begging from those around him. Often times those mon who were broken would be dragged out of the area… and he didn't know what happened to them. Killed by the enemy? More than likely.

The thought fueled his rage before, but now it only caused his fire to emit a simple wiff of smoke. Mikal had but one thought left that continued to barrage his mind. When would his spirit break? Would he be next to start crying? When his gag was changed would he cry for freedom? The thought disturbed him greatly. It wasn't like he was having his legs crushed to dust, or having water dunked over his body again and again. It was simply the idea of having his senses stripped from him. Of being… vulnerable.

His head perked just a bit as he heard the sound of feet crushing grass. He knew there weren't in any stone buildings… but also that they weren't under the sun either. Mikal's best guess was that they were in some sort of tent, given that he was unable to feel the heat of the sun upon his body. Even when it rained he could hear the liquid hitting the fabric above him.

He heard those feet moving along as no doubt whatever jailors they had were looking over the place to make sure everyone was still chained up nice and tightly. Mikal even heard them walking past his spot. On the one hand he wanted to squirm, he wanted to try and at least shout out some sort of insult from behind his gag, but he was so vulnerable at the moment that the guards could very well kick him in between his legs and he would be unable to retaliate.

"Well well.. here's one of those Gold Tribe peeps." A voice spoke out. Mikal tensed as he felt a finger poke against his face, "Not so tough while tied up, are ya?"

An more effeminate voice chuckled, "Look at him. He's trying to glare at us. How sweet. Well, your kind are very very special. You know that, right?"

Mikal grunted through his gag in response. Of course he knew. He had heard tales of what had occurred in the Silver War. Darkrai would want strong soldiers… and he was among the strongest. The reminder only fueled his helpless struggling as his two jailors laughed. "Let's see how long you last, monkey boy." The first voice taunted him.

He could hear the two walking away as they continued to bellow out laughter. Soon enough they were out of the tent and Mikal took to squirming again. His chains rattled as they clung against the metal frame he was hooked to, but they showed no signs of wearing down. He couldn't waste any energy trying to burn through them either. Sure, he could probably break free if he used everything he had, but at the same time he would be left vulnerable when the guards would rush in. He might even be put into a worst position.

The thought made him shudder. He was so much stronger than any that watched over him, he was sure of it! Every single soldier within this army couldn't be as strong as a Tribe member, that had to be fact! Yet… it didn't change the fact that he was here, chained up and made helpless.

He wasn't sure what day of his captivity this was. What he did know was that the guards had taken the time to mock and harass him. Today had been rather light.. but previous days had ranged from annoying to outright humiliation. There was one time where a guard had 'accidentally' dropped some itching powder on his fur. That night had been the most uncomfortable night yet. Another time had his arms being chained high above his head. A series of weights had been tied to his ankles and he was forced to deal with an ever growing pain within his shoulders. Yet another day had one of the guards tickling his armpits, trying to see if any laughter could be milked from Mikal.

With every day that passed his hope for rescue continued to dwindle. For the first few days he was confident that the Valkarians would find this place, that his brothers and sisters would rescue him and the others and this war would be over. He had a feeling that a month had passed. He felt horrible thinking that way. Perhaps it was his bindings messing with his mind? Not being able to see meant that he wouldn't be able to tell if it was night or day. Still… he couldn't shake the thought from his mind that he was never going to be rescued. That… that he would end up dying here.

The last thought chilled him in a way. Never before had he thought he would perish like this. When he had first joined the Gold Tribe he always imagined falling in battle, surrounded by enemies while he used the last of his strength to kill as many as he could. It would be like a scene described from an epic poem. Yet, he had been denied. Instead of a worthy death he had instead been treated to this. A place where he was unable to fight. A place where he was bound up like a criminal.

He wiggled again, trying once more to slip a wrist free from its iron shackle. Once again he tasted defeat. The muscular warrior could only do one last thing. That was to slump against his bindings as sleep beckoned him for another night of rest. Once more his dreams were assaulted with horrible visions. He woke up more than once from the nightmarish scenes that plagued his subconscious. The same scene played out every single damn night. It was of him near the gates of Cape City, and of the many mon that surrounded him. He remembered striking so many down that their faces blurred before his eyes. And then… it all came tumbling down. He saw mon falling down. He saw golden symbols clattering to the ground. Every time it ended the same way. The figures around him would melt together as they would leap upon him. He would scream out while trying to throw the shadows off of him.

Then he would wake up.

Awake or asleep, he was living in his own personal hell. He had been beaten before, of course. Whenever there were training drills there would be times where he would be paired up on a sub par team, and sure there would be times where his brothers and sisters would cream him good. He would just laugh, shake it off, and strive to become better. This was something far different. This was not only taking him down, but kicking mud in his face, spitting on him, and then leaving him to rot. Except he wasn't rotting yet. The only reason he could think of for this opposing force to keep him alive was to set an example for him. Would he paraded out some day and have his throat sliced before this lot? Had… had that happened to the others that had been dragged away?

His internal clock was completely ruined by this point and he couldn't tell if it was night or day. The only time he could tell that was whenever the guards walked into their tent… and even then, he wasn't sure if it was a daytime shift or a nighttime shift. It wasn't as if the guards spoke loudly about what time it was anyways. There was a small routine where every so often one of them would pull away his gag and force some sort of crud into his mouth and then splash water down his throat. It was just another thing that ticked him off and reminded him deep down how powerless he was here.

He tensed against his bindings, huffing a bit when he heard something. A deep groaning as someone else was being dragged out. He could tell by the sounds of the dragging itself that whoever was being taken away this time was rather large.

"... Urg… it's bright…" The voice groaned out.

It took but a few seconds for Mikal to place the voice. He knew the other by only his title, Poison Tip. He was a Toxicroak that Mikal had last seen a few months back. He had gone to some other city, and it seemed that he too had been captured. He could hear the tent flaps closing and Mikal was once again alone with his thoughts. He had initially assumed that he was in a tent full of captured soldiers, those who had begged not to die and were taken captive instead. He… he couldn't have been the only captured Tribe member here… right?

He felt his heart thrash wildly in his chest as images worked into his mind. Images of his brothers and sisters being held in bondage as well. No! They were Gold Tribe! This… this couldn't be happening!

He forced himself to take in deep breaths through his nostrils in an effort to calm himself down. Relax… he had only heard Poison Tip's voice. When others had been dragged away he hadn't been able to place their voice entirely… or perhaps he had purposefully thought that? Now that he thought back on it he could have sworn that a few other voices sounded familiar. No! He was just playing stupid mind games with himself! He had to think positive. More than likely the mon that had been dragged out SOUNDED like Poison Tip, or it could be that Mikal was so worn out by his bondage that he had imagined his brother's voice. It wasn't like he was an expert in regards to identifying Poison Tip. Sure, they were both Gold Tribe, but he wasn't the Toxicroak's supreme best buddy.

He took in a few more deep breaths to fully calm down, but the damage had already been done. He wasn't aware of how much time passed, only that he went in and out of consciousness, every so often having his gag pulled open and food and water being deposited into his mouth. His muscles ached, his body grew even more sore, and every so often he heard a mon being dragged out. He did his best to tune out, but every single time he swore he heard the voice before.

Now he knew he was becoming paranoid… but he couldn't stop himself! Every single time there was a whimper in the tent Mikal instantly wrapped his brain around the groan, doing his best to decipher if it belonged to a brother or sister. It was so dark… and he could feel his own pride starting to drain away. He had taken to lowering his head and doing his best now to cry.

He couldn't cry.

He didn't want to cry.

But then he began to cry. Whenever the gag was pulled away a steady whimper would escape his lips. Even in his sleep he would awake and feel tear stains along his cheeks. The days seemed to stretch on longer and longer as Mikal pulled against his chains once more. Not to show off his willingness to fight… but to escape. Every single muscle in his form ached considerably. He wanted to flex his fingers, to flick his tail once more.

He wasn't sure if his whimpering did it or if it was his crying while he slept, but one day things changed. He could hear the guards in the tent make their way toward him… but not to pull his gag away. Instead he heard the jingling of keys… and then the click he had been waiting for. The Infernape had no strength to catch himself as he fell forward, but a few hands grabbed a hold of his biceps.

"Easy does it…"

Mikal sucked in more air as his heart beat rapidly in his chest. What was going on? Was he being taken out? For what purpose? He heard the tent flaps opening and in one single motion his gag and blindfold were taken away. The ape coughed and sputtered. His eyelids squeezed tightly together as the intense light of the sun threatened to blind him. He heard the tent flaps closing behind him and could hear the sound of footsteps around him. As he was carried along he blinked his eyes and got a clearer picture of where he was.

There were many tents erected with mon walking around and chatting. They looked like regular mon… that was, until he saw those armed with armor. This was a war encampment. But now… where was he being taken? He had no strength to break free from his 'escorts' and lowered his head a bit. Why… why him? What he saw next only confused him even more. He was led into another tent where a metallic chair rested in the center. There were several psychics settled around it. Without much hassle Mikal was set in the chair while metallic restraints were snapped over his forearms, biceps, calves, thighs, chest, and abdomen.

Mikal took in a few ragged breaths as a Hypno held up a hand, "Candidate number six shall now undergo his procedure. Everyone, prepare yourselves."

The gathered psychics stood as they stretched out their hands toward Mikal. The Gold Tribe warrior grit his teeth and squirmed against the restrains. He wasn't getting out anytime soon, and worse yet he was feeling a tingling sensation within his mind. The tingling soon became that of a painful stabbing sensation and the Infernape couldn't help but let out a cry of pain. It felt as if a knife was slicing his skull clean open.

With the start of a painful migrane he began to remember.

~~~

It all started when he was little. He couldn't quite remember his age… but he swore it was when he was five or six. He had been helping his parents in their village when they had come. Those who spoke of a great mon named Darkrai. They had been in the village for several days as one particular emissary had been helping out the sick. Mikal had been playing with the other children when they caught sight of the elderly Slowking making his way toward them. Mikal held the ball, unsure of what to do as the water type made his way right up to him.

"Ah… you must be Mikal." The Slowking said, a bright smile on his face.

"... Yes, I am." Mikal said warily. "My parents said I'm not supposed to talk to strangers."

The Slowking managed a weak smile and kneeled next to Mikal, "Well, I am Yolandre."

"I'm Mikal." The Chimchar responded after a moment.

Yolandre managed another smile, "I don't think we're strangers anymore, are we?"

Mikal slowly nodded, "I guess not."

Yolandre led Mikal away from the others and to a lone thick log that the two took to sitting on. The Slowking was silent for a moment, "... Your families have heard why we come here." The Slowking began. "A war will soon be waged across the world. Even though your family has no true part in it… it will affect them as well. It's why we come here. To help protect everyone here."

MIkal frowned at that, "I've heard of war in old stories. My dad was in one once."

"Indeed." Yolandre frowned, "War… isn't pretty. You will learn that in time. But, there is something you can help me with. You can help your family with. Your friends too."

Mikal tilted his head, "What do you mean?"

Yolandre smiled again, "I sense a great future in you, child. One day, when you are fully grown, you will be a very powerful warrior." He set his hand on Mikal's shoulder, "I would like to train you personally. To strengthen your body. To make you a fierce warrior. When war breaks out… when mon begin to fight, you will be strong enough to protect everyone here. You can prevent anything bad from happening here."

Mikal frowned at that, "... I don't know."

Yolandre chuckled, "Of course you don't. No child ever has a firm idea on what they want to be when they grow up. But… I do insist. I wish to train you. It would require taking you away from here for a time… but, I offer you a deal. You train with me for five years. If at the end of those years you absolutely do not wish to become a warrior, I will release you. You can use my training to protect your village instead. Do we have a deal?"

Mikal was wary as he shook the elder's hand. The talk with his parents occurred later that night. His mother had cried while his father had laid the last of his wisdom on him. The next day he had left with Yolandre.

~~~

"Move your legs! Raise it higher!"

Mikal was huffing and covered with sweat. The Monferno had built up a decent set of muscle the past five years. All days were the same. Wake up, perform the history lesson, then proceed to battle training. He had done all sorts of exercises. Push-ups, sit-ups, crunches, all manner of exercises had been demanded by Yolandre. Any signs of weakness were just snorted at by the elder. It was thanks to his constant pushing and stern attitude that Mikal even was at the point he was now.

"Halt."

Mikal stopped his kick and didn't move a muscle. The Slowking walked to the still Monferno and grabbed his leg, jerking it up as Mikal twitched a bit. "Like that." The psychic stated. "Continue."

Mikal huffed as he kicked again, and again at the dummy in front of him. The wooden being shook back and forth with every strike the Monferno imparted onto it. The ape huffed and puffed loudly. HIs muscles throbbed as he pushed himself again and again. The flame along the tip of his tail billowed powerful while he threw out a series of Mach Punches. Each and every one hit the mark that lay on the center of the target's chest.

Yolandre watched silently and then snapped his fingers. "Halt." Mikal once more halted in mid-punch. Every muscle grew tense as he took in a few ragged breaths. The Slowking walked over and scanned his form up and down, "Ball up your fist tighter." He finally stated, "Continue."

Mikal threw out another series of punches. He didn't stop until the dummy's chest was weak enough that his fist bashed right on through the thick wood.

~~~

"Does… that mean Valkarians are evil then?" The Infernape asked.

Yolandre closed his eyes, slowly opening them to look upon his apprentice. The Infernape had indeed grown into a very sturdy warrior. The ape had a nice toned body that was sure to strike fear into an enemy's heart, and make females oogle with glee. The Slowking let out his pent up breath. "... In a manner." He explained. "On the one hand, it happened such a long time ago. It was during their forefathers' time. Imagine trying to remember what your great-great-great-grandfather did. Imagine trying to remember every single thing he did. Then imagine that he didn't tell his son that much about his life. And then imagine less gets passed down as the generations pass. Eventually someone shows up at your doorstep, stating that your ancestor killed his ancestor's city, and now he wants revenge. Does that make you evil?"

Mikal crossed his arms, frowning at the thought, "I see."

"But!" Yolandre stated as he held up a finger, "They are still a threat. With their attack on Darkrai they knew what they were doing. There they were, attacking a creature who could not defend himself. That is pretty low."

"It is." Mikal said, "So… ultimately I am to fight them?"

"You might." Yolandre said. "It depends on where you are sent." The Slowking sighed, a few tears in his eyes. "I never thought this day would be quickly approaching. Just next year you'll be…" He wiped an eye, "Heh, don't worry about my old babbling. This is what you've been pushing toward, my apprentice." He beamed at the Infernape. "You will bring courage to many. You may not be a commander, but you will be one of the fiercest warriors we have to offer." He sat up and placed his hand on his apprentice's shoulder, "Remember that. You will help us take our enemies down one by one. It is only then that the world will be fixed. We still have a year. Now, more importantly than ever, you are to train your body and get ready. The Gold Tribe warriors they house are very fierce. They will be as strong as you are."

The Infernape grinned, "I can take them!"

"I know you can…" Yolandre chuckled, "I know you can."

~~~

Mikal didn't know really what to do. There before him stood the various psychics. He looked back at the old Slowking who gave him a small smile and a nod. Mikal looked back at the network point and took in a deep breath. The psychics said he would more than likely pass out with his first teleportation. Still, he would be sent to home base and given his orders there. He would finally be able to meet those that Yolandre spoke of. Revoll…

Mikal smiled at his master one last time and approached the psychics. "I am ready."

The beings all gave simple nods as they fell to their knees and focused.

Already Mikal could feel a stinging sensation within his mind. And then… darkness.

~~~

The Infernape twitched in his chair as a Hypno grinned at his special visitor. "You see, Revoll, the procedure is flawless." He looked at the folder he held and opened it up. "Now… just for a refresher, the first candidate, the Poliwrath, and the second candidate, the Venasaur, are at Karn, helping to push back against their forces." He flipped to the next page, "The third candidate, the Primeape, was sent over to Beautruce. The fourth candidate, the Electivire, was sent back to Valkaria."

He flipped one last page, "Our fifth candidate, the Toxicroak, is still here in camp, and now our sixth candidate is as well." He closed the folder with a satisfactory smirk. "So far none have regained their prior memories. For all intents and purposes, those memories are permanently deleted. They are truly within our thrall." He looked back at the Infernape and watched with gleeful satisfaction as the restraints on his body were released. The two golden bangles strapped to his biceps were snapped off by two assistants and taken out of the tent. "Now… it is your time to shine." He bowed to the Heracross. "Feel free to assign him wherever you please. And also, his name is Mikal."

"Welcome to the main base camp, Mikal," The Heracross greeted the Infernape. "I trust you know who I am."

The Infernape rubbed at his head, blinking his eyes a bit. It took a moment for the warrior to realize who he was speaking to. "Revoll…" He croaked out. The Infernape got off of the chair and kneeled before the Heracross, "I'm sorry about passing out, sir." He quickly said. "I hear it happens to everyone their first time."

Revoll held up a palm and waved it side to side. "Don't trouble yourself with it, it is natural," He commented. "Now you've had extensive training over your life, and I'd like to put that to use right away. You will be gathered with a team of others, and sent along with them to a variety of places."

Mikal gave a stern nod as he stood up straight, crossing his arms behind his back. "And my tasks in those places, sir?"

Revoll placed his hands behind his back and began to pace. "Now understand that this mission is of the utmost importance, and thus discretion is absolutely essential. I must hear you say that you understand this before I give you this task."

Mikal gave a stern nod, "I understand completely, sir. I have been trained for your use through and through."

Revoll nodded. "Excellent. Now, there is a very important Pokemon that Darkrai and myself have been inquiring about recently. Recent events have sped up our necessity for it to be found. Most 'mon do not have a clue about the existence of it, but Darkrai has confirmed it for me, and I have recently found a few hints about possible locations," He explained, as he handed the Infernape a list of different places. "Begin at the top, and scroll through. If you find any signs, report to me. Follow any other instructions I have listed down. Your mission is to find a Pokemon known as 'the Watcher'."

Mikal scanned the document slowly, giving a few nods to show Revoll he was listening. He soon turned his attention back down the Heracross and snapped a salute, "I understand, sir. I won't let you down!"

 

[Turnip]

Storming The Tower, Except There's No Lightning Because They're Not Electric Type
Featuring Snype and Razathiel​

Before Abel went off with Able to begin the distraction, he let Snype and Raz know to go forward to the main citadel where the Priest was--through the fog--only when the distraction would begin. He explained it would be obvious when that was, as he figured a good portion of the enemy, and the fog for that matter, would probably be pursuing them (or at the very least have their eyes on them) by that point. For a good while, the city was quiet. The wind blew steadily through the misty autumn air, and one of the few sounds heard in the quiet city was the fog steadily whirling through and around the large tower.

But the sounds of silence suddenly came to a stark halt, as a large eruption rang out from the other side of the city. One of the other large towers suddenly had an loud explosion ring out from inside. The tower swiftly caught fire, and smoke poured out. Quickly, the city seemed to come alive, as first dozens, and then hundreds of feral cries from infected 'mon began to pour out, and 'mon of every shape and size began to go toward the explosion. The fog seemed to have reacted as well, as large portions of it began to break off from its nest around the main citadel and slowly begin to pour across the streets--and toward the distraction's location. A sizeable but smaller portion of it still remained around the tower, as was expected.

"Keheh, guess that's obvious enough! Let's get moving." Snype said as he placed his small hood over his head and headed into the city. Razathiel followed behind, floating psychically so as not to alert anything with the clanking of his armour. 'Mon could be seen running through the streets now. Most were feral, infected in some way by the plague. However, they were also accompanied by, and apparently guided by other, sane 'mon with emblems and insignias of Darkrai, along with a Drapion. They must have been the Priest's personal army that was mentioned before. They seemed to have some control over the plagued 'mon, a clear indication that the Priest was the architect of the plague.

"Nothing in particular I should know about this blasted stealth business, is there?" Raz murmured in question to the Sableye near him. "Doubt I need to tell you I've far more taste for loud and explosive entrances..."

"Keheh, yeah I gotcha. Just keep silent and don't get spotted. Simple enough." Snype said. "Just keep doin that floating thing of yours. We're going in fairly blind so if theres more security coming up, I'll improvise."

As the two proceeded through the streets, they moved relatively effortlessly toward the Citadel. Abel and Able's distraction seemed to be paying off, most of the ferals and the Priest's soldiers were caught over there. The occasional group of ferals still passed by, though. As they approached closer through the streets, with the Citadel and the fog around in within sight, the occasional 'mon in their homes would poke their heads out to observe the two sneaking through the streets. Some whispered to each other, while others tried to deter them away.

"What the hell are you two doing?!" Hissed a Donphan through a window. "You'll get changed if you're caught out there!"

"Kehehe, we better not get caught then eh? Stealth you know?" Snype replied with that big cheeky grin of his.

"Not get caught? What are you, with those da-" The Donphan began to say, before the howls of feral 'mon could be heard down the street. "Ah, shit, here some come, duck for cover!" He warned as a group a feral 'mon, three Arbok and two Weepinbells, came roaming down the street, although not apparently immediately spotting the pair yet.

"Well better stay true to my word. Kehe." Snype said as he signaled Raz to get hiding he needed to get inside some kind of building. He simply took a gamble and barged through the first abandoned looking building he could find. The wizard let out a scoff of disgust and followed, grumbling to himself as he found a wall to duck behind - not that the Ralts needed to at his height.

"Stealth is so boring," Razathiel muttered. "We don't even get to kill anything."

The ferals moved along the street toward Abel's burning distraction, and the path ahead seemed clear. The abandoned building Snype and Raz shot in seemed to have a pretty clear view of the Citadel ahead. It was the largest building in Mercurion, covered by a thick layer of the fog around it. Once the two would get into range of it, they would put whoever was inside on notice that they were there. Before that, the coast seemed pretty clear.

"Hey, you're not tryin'a actually get there, are you?" The Donphan asked them through the open window. "A...Are you?"

"Silence, cur," the Dreadmage snapped exasperatedly. "I've no patience for you."

"Uh... what he means is yeah. We're planning on heading right into the heart of the problem. We think we have a means to get through the fog mostly unharmed anyways..." Snype explained.

"So you're trying to go after Bastille?" The Donphan asked. "I thought all the 'mon trying to do something about this had died off..."

"Keheh, well, I got a few friends I owe for leaving them in this mess... you probably think we're crazy dontcha?" Snype said to the Donphan.

"Well... yeah, of course I do! The Gold Tribe that were here tried and died, soldiers tried and died," The Donphan explained. "Everyone's tried... and everyone's died. It's something we accepted long ago now here... no one beats the Priest."

"How pathetic," Razathiel muttered.

"W-what do you mean?" The Donphan asked.

"If these so-called heroes tried oh so hard and failed," the wizard scowled. "Then they were weak and deserved nothing less than the fate that befell them."

"Those 'mon died valiantly. If you can do any better, I'd like to see you try!" The Donphan yelled at the Ralts and gestured to the large Citadel nearby.

Snype crossed his arms an decided against arguing with Raz. "Well we're going either way. Personally I don't want to sit idle as the world's being destroyed." Snype said.

"... Who the heck are you guys?" The Donphan asked them.

"I..." Razathiel began, before glancing to the side and realising the usual introductions he performed may not be the best option in this case. He continued in a more hushed voice, still determined to appear as imposing as possible. "I am Razathiel, the Dreadmage. Wizard, psychic, sorcerer - evil of the highest proportion!" He clenched an armoured fist. "The creator of this fog has crossed me, and for that they will pay dearly... oh, and that's Snype." The Ralts ceased his intense glare for a moment as he gestured to his companion.

"The Dreadmage... I don't recall, but I have heard of a Snype before..." The Donphan stated. "Might not be the same."

"The very same. Keheh." Snype replied.

"... The King of Thieves?" The Donphan asked with his eyes open wide. He turned to the left and right of the street, before he leaned in. "You still have friends here. I'll send word. Go get him. Please. For all of us." He implored.

"Oh sure, a thief can take care of a malevolent, plague-mongering priest no problem, but Giratina forbid an evil wizard wielding disasterous eldritch powers give it a shot!" The Dreadmage hissed. "No offense, Snype," Raz murmured quickly before folding his arms and pouting grumpily, returning his attention to the Donphan. "Golly-fucking-gee, what sound logic. Hope it serves you well, prick."

Snype was surprised at the sudden shift. The Donphan actually sounded confident in Snype! "Oh thank Arceus... some of them are alive huh? Glad they were able to troop through this whole mess... keheh..."

The Donphan nodded and sulked back into his home, before vanishing in the darkness. The two proceeded forward again. The rest of the trip through Mercurion was less eventful, with Snype and Raz encountering only minor resistance. A few ferals here or there, a few of Bastille's guards, and a few 'mon poking their heads through their homes, curious of the two strangers making their way to the Priest's castle. Then, they finally reached the point just before the gates of the Citadel. And just around those gates, and the entire castle, the fog of the Priest was present. The moment the two would step through it, they may not fully feel the effects of the plague. However, the lord of the plague would immediately feel their presence. The moment they step through, this would no longer be a sneak mission. It would be a straight-on fight against one of the most dangerous Agents of Darkrai.

Snype grew extremely nervous standing in front of the gates. He kept his confident mood going for this long but now that he was about to enter the belly of the beast... it was a bit nerve wrecking. "Keheh... well here we are. You ready for this Raz?"

"Storming some bastard's castle and killing him- fairly textbook as far as I'm concerned," Razathiel replied with confidence, before hesitating. "Although legendaries being in the mix does, er... complicate things."

"The gold bracelet should protect us from infection. We just have to outwit this guy and everything will go back to normal... The Ables should get the signal as soon as we get in the fog." Snype said.

"Speaking of 'mon getting the signal as soon as we enter the fog; I should probably suggest collapsing the entrance once we step inside," Raz advised. "I'd hate for Bastille to bother us with reinforcements in the middle of a duel. Is that fine? Being the King of Thieves and all, I find it hard to believe you haven't escaped from a few high windows in the past."

"Hah! I broke into the heart of Tollen by myself! This is nothing. The Ables should be able to get through either way to help out... Besides, making a big boom would make a better signal anyways! I got a feeling you're itching to blow something up anyway right?" Snype joked.

"Am I that easy to read?" The wizard asked, twirling his staff in hand and giving a sly grin.

Snype proceeded first into the front doors of the Citadel. Immediately, the fog began to encircle and target around the two of them. It whirled and quickly encircled the Sableye first. The fog had a very peculiar way of working. It slowly worked into the mind first, then began to flow into the body from there. Fortunately, Snype didn't experience any of the effects because of the gold bracelet. The same went for Raz. They were immune... for now. But they weren't invisible.

---

Deep in the heart of the Citadel, Bastille continued to gaze out into the city as he observed the area from which the explosion occurred. The area had already been mostly cleared out, and the Drapion was confident the culprits would be caught momentarily. However, at that precise moment, another matter caught his attention. He closed his eyes, and extended his arm to call out his Meowth guard on the side.

The Meowth quickly sprinted over. "Yes, sire?" He asked humbly, bending his head.

"Dere are..." Bastille opened his eyes. "... intrudas, in the palace. Assemball everywan, geev dem a greeting."

"Everyone?" The Meowth reiterated.

"Everywan."

"B-but sire, that will leave you unprotected," The Meowth protested.

The Drapion did not smile, nor did he change the tone of his voice. "Eef dey are abal to fight through my men, den dey are wordy to die by my hand."

---

Chattering, yelling, roaring, stomping. Noises of 'mon of all kinds were suddenly heard throughout the palace. There was movement all across, and they were all converging to the front gates.

Snype walked through the dealy fog completely unphased thanks to the bracelet though he could still feel it working through his mind and body. He had an idea of what kind of tricks Bastille would pull of when they fought... he'd have to expect something along the lines of mind reading. It was no wonder the priest was never defeated. "Sounds like he's sending everyone and the kitchen sink. Kehehe."

"If that's the case," Raz began, a pensive smile crossing his lips. "Then perhaps we should leave for now, and return through a slightly... loftier entrance. Collapse a stairwell slightly higher up."

The screams and roars of the 'mon inside were coming closer. Soon, coming from the top of the staircase, a group of feral 'mon were running through the citadel right toward the front entrance. There were almost twenty, including four Pontyta, two Archens, two Bayleef, four Whirlipedes, two Murkrow, a Politoad, a Shellos, and four Breloom.

"Well sounds better then taking them all down head on. Keheh. Fighting fair was never my thing. Lead on Raz." Snype said.

"Very well," The wizard obliged as he strolled back out the way they came in. "Now do hold on, and be glad you're immune to Psychic. Unless you can get up there yourself by some kind of ghostly means - it'd certainly be helpful; I'd rather not bother with adjusting for the extra weight."

"Pfft, you forget I'm an expert at breaking in. I'll climb up. Easy enough. Kehehe" Snype replied.

"The question isn't whether it's easy, it's whether it's quick," Raz responded, before letting out an exhasperated sigh. "I'll assume you can follow me up, minion. Do try not to die." And with that, the Ralts shot upwards, leaving a cloud of dust and psychic energy in his wake.

Snype quickly clung onto the closest wall and quickly started to climb up. He'd use Shadow Sneak as a means to make the climb upwards a bit faster on his part. Nowhere near as fast as Raz but quick enough to get away from the ground floor. The ferals quickly arrived to the front of the gates, and ran in circles around the ground floor, looking desperately for their targets. Some tried to proceed outside, while others scoured the first floor. Meanwhile, Razathiel was long gone. He let out another psychic blast to his side as he neared the tower's summit, corkscrewed in through an balcony and, with psychic assistance, slid softly to a halt across the polished floor. Snype was still making his way up the tower but was close enough to the top. He figured Raz would blow the stairs up soon enough. As if on cue, there was a sudden loud crack, followed by rumbling not long after. As the Sableye poked his head up over the sill of the balcony, he spotted the closest stairwell devolving into rubble. As they proceeded up the stairs, however, a group of guards were storming down. These were sentient 'mon, as seen by their speech.

"There they are!" The Umbreon in front yelled. Accompanying her were four other 'mon, all seemingly well-trained and sturdy, including two Machoke, a Cacturne, and two Arcanine.

"Tsk... guess they aren't all brainless..." Snype said as he held his claws up to the group of sentients. "Guess you're all mighty proud of what your boss has done huh?"

The guards didn't look like they were in any mood for a joke. The two Arcanine quickly burned the staircase below the pair's feet in an attempt to get them off of the staircase and maybe into the air. The Machoke then dove forward and used a an Ice Punch. Then the Cacturne came in flinging with a Magical Leaf down the stairs. The Umbreon stayed back for the moment. With a short grunt to acknowledge their presence, Raz flung a Psychic wave out in front of him, sending himself flipping back down the stairs and once again to a sliding halt across the polished floor. He was glad that having a Sableye for a companion meant he could at least remain copious with his use of Psychic attacks - though the presence of an Umbreon and a Cacturne complicated that somewhat.

Snype lept off of the stairs and clung right onto the wall to get into a better position. He had to focus on the Umbreon and Cacturne. Raz was going to have some difficulty dealing with them for sure. "Raz deal with that Machoke first!" Snype called out. He still had four others to deal with. The odds weren't too high on Snypes end. Lucky for him he had just the thing for this situation. Snype's eyes gave off a pinkish glow as he stared down the Umbreon. "Kehehe... comon do we really have to fight~?" Snype said as he attempted to use attract on the Umbreon.

The guards ran forward, with the Machoke and Arcanine both heading for the Sableye. The Machoke tried a low kick toward the Sableye, while the two Arcanine divided. One sent a powerful flamethrower at Raz, while the other did the same toward Snype. The Umbreon stood there petrified at Snype's gaze. "Uh... uhm..." She murmured in confusion, clearly beginning to be affected by the Sableye's charm. The Cacturne meanwhile charged for the Ralts after the Arcanine's flames were finished. He made no attempt to check whether they did any damage. The Cacturne simply charged and flung a Dark Pulse in his direction.

Low kick of course was useless against Snype being a ghost type and all but the flamethrower caused Snype to get off of the wall and move closer to the umbreon. "Keheh... Maybe you and I could be friends? Maybe a little more... The others seem to disagree though. What a shame... Kehe." He continued working his charm. Meanwhile, Razathiel hopped back, sparing a moment to roll his eyes at Snype's antics before dealing with the attacks befalling him. The wizard flung out a quick Dazzling Gleam to nullify the Dark Pulse coming his way before turning his attention to the Flamethrower, using his Hidden Power to fuel the fire and redirect it into the Cacturne's path.

"Uh... I... " The Umbreon blushed and turned away from Snype. Her sights set instead to Raz, as she fired off a Dark Pulse at him. The Arcanine meanwhile fired off another flamethrower at the Sableye. Meanwhile, the fire which was redirected by Raz targeted the Cacturne, who was in the middle of attempting to fire off another Dark Pulse of his own. He narrowly avoided the flames, though he fell off the staircase in the process and onto the bottom of the floor below. The Arcanine meanwhile fired off another flamethrower at Raz, while the Machoke decided to target the Ralts as well instead. He went forward and tried a Brick Break on the smaller Ralts.

Snype was blasted by the flamethrower this time. While he could have made an attempt to avoid it, this was but another step of Snype manipulation. "Gah! K-Kehe... Ruining our moment and everything. A beautiful gal like you should have peace and quiet... Kehehe... You're in charge right? Can't you call them off~? I was looking forward to getting to know you better... " Snype flirted. The Umbreon averted her gaze and tried not to concentrate on Snype. However, she seemed to not be able to contained herself.

"I... I'm not in charge, sorry," She mumbled and blushed. She was unable to even concentrate enough to fire at Raz again either. She momentarily gazed at the Arcanine, and was almost tempted to attack him for attacking Snype. However, she composed herself and simply stood there.

"For fuck's sake, Snype," Razathiel muttered to himself. He smirked as his attention turned back to the battle and the Machoke approached him, nonchalantly raising a hand and swiping it to the side to send a wave of Psychic force into the larger 'mon's right shoulder. The wizard made no move to dodge - it would be completely unnecessary to do so when he could simply use his enemies as shields. He wasn't usually quite so fond of fighting in such enclosed spaces, but dealing with so many enemies flinging attacks haphazardly at him meant that the relatively cramped conditions only made it easier to capitalize on friendly fire. Both of the Dark Pulses and the flamethrower collided with the Machoke, and the 'mon fell over from the pain of the combined attacks. The Arcanine pair burst forward after, barely acknowledging their fallen comrade, and fire both of the flamethrowers at Snype. The Cacturne stayed behind the fire, not wishing to get attacked by it, and prepared an attack of his own, though waited for the moment. He appeared to be concentrating.

Snype reached out and pet the Umbreon on the head. "Kehehe, well coulda fooled me... whats to say you can't have things your way huh?" Snype said with a smirk. "Help us get to the top. You seem familiar with the layout. Wouldn't want to get in any more fights or anything right?" Snype said as he scratched at his chin. "We just need a way out of- gah!" Snype cried out in pain as he was blasted once more. "You know if you could just let me finish!" Snype called out. He noticed the cacturne preparing some form of attack. "Kehe sit right." Snype said as he used shadow sneak to stop the cacturne. Razathiel, meanwhile, had flung the downed Machoke up into the air with a wave of his hand and levelled his staff at the 'mon. With a burst of purple light, the wizard loosed a Psychic blast that sent the burly Superpower Pokémon flying down the corridor.

The Cacturne was stopped cold before he could release his own attack thanks to Snype's Shadow Sneak. His type parallel with the attack however didn't cause him too much damage. Abandoning his previous plan of attack, he flung a set of Magical Leafs at Snype. The Umbreon meanwhile looked torn and distressed at the fact that the others were attacking Snype. She refused to budge, even aim at Raz now as she simply watched in a frown. The pair of Arcanine once more dove forward, this time both of them working in unison to try and reach closer to Raz and Crunch him, though they were intercepted by the Machoke Missile sent toward them. One of them manage to avoid the large fighting type and continued onward to Raz. The other Arcanine collided directly with the large Fighting Type's body, and was thrust backward.

Snype put up a dramatic act when he was hit by the leaves to try and get the Umbreon to lean more toward his side. "Kehehe... that all you got? Try that one more time I dare ya." Snype said, a glimmer appearing in his eye.

"Ah, a new volunteer," Razathiel said with mirth, firing off another Psychic blast to fall back out of range of the Arcanine's Crunch attack and, hopefully, punish him for trying it. "Please, approach further, if you dare."

Following the hit by Snype with the Magical Leaf, the Umbreon suddenly gasped and snapped. She darted at the Cacturne and sunk her teeth into his neck. "What the hell?!" He screamed as she pressed down hard. Meanwhile, the Arcanine tried to dart out of the way of the Psychic blast that was coming from Raz, but there wasn't much room to maneuver. He was struck across the shoulder and prevented from sinking his teeth into the small Ralts. However, the other Arcanine recovered from getting hit by the Machoke and blasted Raz full force with a powerful Fire Blast, blazing the entire corridor where they stood, including the downed Machoke and the other Arcanine.

Snype made his move once the Umbreon stepped in to help out. "Kehehe, atta girl!" Snype called out as he moved in to attack the Cacturne with Foul Play, giving him a good jab to the face. The Cacturne fell back from Snype attack and the Umbreon's teeth. He tried to pull her off by flinging a Magic Leaf on her, while trying to target Snype with them simultaneously. Snype kept attacking the Cacturne, taking care not to attack the Umbreon. He still needed her after all to get out of this spot. No doubt more guards would follow suit. With a (word) following the roar of flames, the Dreadmage flung a wave of psychic force to the side, sending the Ralts barrelling rightwards. As the purple blast tore through one door on the mage's left, Raz himself flew like a bullet and crashed through the door to his right. Although the flames still heated the metal of his armor to the point of singing his skin a little, it had at least cushioned the blow of doorframe destruction for him.

Through the door on the right, another group of guards were present. The door managed to knock right into a Gloom, who was directly in front. However, right behind the Gloom were three other 'mon, a Mr. Mime, Swellow, and Smeargle, all of which were climbing a ladder from a lower floor which was present in the room (the Swellow simply flew through the opening). The Gloom was propelled back by the door, but the Mr. Mime suddenly flung a Psybeam at the smaller Ralts invader, with the Swellow aiming to Peck at him, and the Smeargle glancing back at the Gloom, and proceeding to sketch out his first line of attack.

On the other side of things, the psychic blast also caused the door on the other side to swing open, which caused another group of guards to enter: a Flaafy, Arbok, Primeape and Politoad. They proceeded into the main room and then charged the Sableye there. The Umbreon panicked and stepped in front of him. "You better run, they'll keep coming!" She pleaded. The Arcanine chased down the Ralts and proceeded to go toward the room he flung himself in.

"Come with us! You gotta know a few shortcuts through this place. We're aiming for the top." Snype said, getting ready to make a dash for it.

"If you're trying to aim to just get to the top, the only path up is right there," She gestered to the stairs behind her. "But there's nothing of value waiting for you there! Nothing but death! There's dozens more guards waiting to kill you! Run while you can! Back the way you came! If I follow, the rest will catch up to you!"

Snype shook his head. "I can't turn back now. That plague has gone on long enough." Snype said.

"Oh, boo-hoo-" Razathiel began as he stepped somewhat hurriedly out of the room he was just in, followed shortly by a purple beam that just clipped his elbow. He was cut off as he came face-to-face with the Arcanine from earlier, and scowled as he brought a furious Psyshock directly into the 'mon's face. Although singing from the flames had given him a welcome boost of adrenaline, Raz didn't particularly appreciate the sentiment behind the attack - that, and the bastard had just cut him off by appearing right in front of him. "Don't interrupt me!" The wizard snapped, before launching up and over the 'mon on his way to the stairs. From the sounds of things, that other staircase would be a far better candidate for collapse. "As oh-so-tragic as this is, we may have to continue up, anyway- let's head for the stairs, Snype, and leave these hapless fuckwits behind."

The Umbreon looked up at the staircase, and then at Snype. She seemed to be conflicted at the moment, and shook her head a few times violently. The other guards began to approach together down the corridor at the same pace. They stepped over the downed Arcanine, and the seven of them ran toward Snype and Raz and the Umbreon. Seeing them coming, the Umbreon shut her eyes tightly and yelled. "Lord Bastille isn't up there!"

"W-what?" Snype shouted. "Then where is he? We need to find him as soon as possible! Don't tell me this tower was just some big trap!" Snype shouted instantly. Razathiel chose instead to ignore the turned guard, flipping over to the stairs and readying himself.

"No, he's here, on this floor!" The Umbreon began. She began gesturing to the path further down. "He's moving around to tire you out while throwing as many guards as he can at you. He's down th-" The Umbreon was suddenly cut off. Her eyes grew wide, and the fog across the tower began to encircle around her. The misty dark cloud began to pour into her body from her pores, and she gasped for air. It appeared to begin choking her at first, then cause her to suddenly bleed out from her nose, mouth and eyes. Her eyes began to morph colors suddenly, going from her natural color to a deep, deep purple. The Umbreon fell down to the floor and began convulsing, slowly dying a painful death as she did.

Snype reached out to the Umbreon but stepped back in horror when she was infected by the gas. "N... no..." Snype looked around the room they were in for any trace of Bastille. Unless he himself was the fog. This changed their plans completely. "He's going to keep following us. We gotta get out of this room!" Snype said, looking toward the path the Umbreon gestured. They were totally outnumbered however. Where was another female guard when you needed one...

"Keh... any ideas Raz?"

"Slaughter them all!" Razathiel grinned with malice, before shaking his head to clear it. As much as he'd like to let his bloodlust run wild, this was a little bit dicey even for his standards. "Ugh, um... do you think you have enough destructive power in you to take out a doorway?"

"Pretty sure Foul Play only works on other Mon. I can take down the more physical fighters but even then we're outnumbered. They'll just keep coming..." Snype tried his best to plan some escape route. He could easily use Shadow Sneak to make his way out but that would leave raz on his own. The first of the group of guards had almost reached the pair as they debated on what to do next. The Politoad attempted to spray the entire area with a Bubblebeam, but focused primarily on Raz, while the Flaafy came in after with a Thunderbolt on the Ralts. Razathiel used the staircase for cover as best he could, but the electric attack still struck his arm, only adding to the singes he'd already recieved. The Arbok came at Snype with a Glare, attempting to paralyze him. The Primeape meanwhile punched his way across the side of the building multiple times, as he induced a Rock Slide over them. Snype used Detect to avoid the glare of the arbok. "Raz I'll take care of the ladders. Try and take out that staircase! We need to cut off any possible entrypoints!"

"It's done. Stand aside, away from the stairwell - quickly," The wizard warned before obliging, releasing a powerful Psyshock at the twisting staircase behind them and flipping upwards toward the ceiling. With his teeth clenched in concentration, Razathiel turned his psychic grasp to the stairwell, hoping his blast had created as much debris as possible. The Dreadmage let out a cry of effort - quickly disguised as an evil cackle - as he wrenched forth all he could manage, sending clouds of dust, rays of purple light and chunks of crushed marble barrelling into the hallway.

With the path upward sealed off, the guards seemed to pursue their opponents even more vehemently. However, they were suddenly struck by the marble Raz flung forward. The Flaafy and Arbok were both struck by the piece and fell backward. However, the Politoad and Primeape continued forward. They were followed by the remainder of the other guards, the Swellow, Mr. Mime, Smeargle, and the Gloom that seemed to have recovered from the door slam previously. Also seeming to appear were four more guards, two from each doorway: two Growlithe, a Linoone and a Bronzong.

"SNYYYPE!" A loud shout suddenly came from the balcony. Two twin Staraptors flew in, carrying with them a Lombre, a Misdreavus, a Purloin, and a Cubone. All of them Snype would recognize as thieves he had recruited during his previous visits to Beatruce. "We're here!" The Cubone, known as Erik, called out.

"Thought you could use a hand!" The Lombre, known as Cassandra, stated with a smirk. She landed off of the Staraptor in front. "Leave these bozos to us. You two keep going down the hall! Finish this nightmare off for us, will ya?"

"Y-you guys! " Snype called out in surprise! "H-how? The gas! It'll get a hold of you!" Snype called out. The group must have known the dangers before entering but this seemed like the most surefire chance to rush right to the heart of the problem. He was already instinctively backing his way toward the nearby passage but staying would just get them all in more trouble.

"If you kick the Priest's ass," The Cubone known as Jensen began. As he stated this, the fog was already encircling around them. "It'll all be worth it! Don't fuck up! Make this count!"

"I... Keh well guess I can't argue with that. You all be careful. Come on Raz, lets take this guy down," Snype said as he made his way down the path.

"I was not-" Razathiel began, before pausing. He didn't have the time for unnecessary banter. "All right, let's fucking murder this priest bastard." And with that, he took off on a psychic cloud down the hall and toward the ceiling. As he barrelled forward he bounced off the masonry with psychic assistance, creating cracks and clouds of dust in his wake so as to be hard to track on his way to where the Umbreon had pointed before her untimely demise.